Port operations at Piraeus and other Greek ports will be suspended today due to a 24-hour general strike against government plans to overhaul the pension system.

The strike is organised by Greece's two biggest labour unions, jointly representing more than 2.5 million workers.

"Nothing will be moving on Wednesday. The country will be paralyzed.  This is the only way for workers to show their opposition to the government's decisions," spokesman Efstathios Anestis of the umbrella workers' union General Confederation of Workers of Greece (GSEE) told Reuters.

Delays in bunkering operations were also expected in Piraeus today due to the strike, which includes customs.

Meanwhile in Italy, a nationwide protest by truckers against the government's latest budget proposal has affected port operations since Monday.

The Italian ports of Genoa, Livornio, La Spezia and Venice were paralysed as truckers blocked the container depots, the terminals and the entrances to the ports.

The situation is expected to ease by today.

According to a local bunkering company, the strike has also hit bunker supply in Genoa and Venice.  A trader said there was no bunker supply in these two ports today, and said the situation might last until Friday.

Elsewhere, a port staff strike is expected to delay operations at the French ports of Fos and Lavera on Friday, December 14.

The strike is expected to be staged between 1300 and 1500 hours. No loading, discharging or disconnection will be possible during the period.

[Updates on bunkering disruptions  at 10:30 GMT]