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War in Ukraine threatens to disrupt shipments via China-Europe railway, networking gear maker Zyxel warns
- Zyxel, a maker of routers and switches, suspended freight through the link operated by China Railway about three days ago
- Russia’s invasion of Ukraine risks worsening a global shipping crisis that has cut off electronics supplies, such as smartphones, video game consoles and chips
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Networking equipment maker Zyxel Communications Corp has stopped shipping from China to Europe by rail, as the war in Ukraine threatens to snarl a key land route at the heart of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative.
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Zyxel, a maker of routers and switches controlled by Taiwan’s Unizyx Holding Corp, suspended freight through the link operated by China Railway about three days ago, company president Karsten Gewecke said.
The company anticipates potential disruptions along the route, which links China to swathes of Europe and Asia and is considered a major component of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, a Zyxel representative said.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine now risks worsening a global shipping crisis that has cut off supplies of electronics, from smartphones and video gaming consoles to semiconductors for cars, over the past year.
The Taiwanese company had begun relying more on orders by train because they take three to four weeks to arrive, while a ship might take a couple of months, Zyxel’s Gewecke said in an interview.
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