A nationwide strike against rising prices disrupted transport, retailing and manufacturing across Belgium on Monday.
High-speed international rail services in and out of the country to France, the UK, Germany and the Netherlands were cancelled and picketing disrupted the port of Antwerp.
Workers were protesting in advance of the government's 2009 budget to demand action on inflation and the rising cost of living.
In Brussels, all tram services were scrapped and only a fraction of underground rail and bus services were running.
Provincial train services were also hit and the two main rail stations in the capital, Brussels Midi and Brussels Central, were closed. Resulting traffic jams clogged motorways across the country.
Staff at Delhaize supermarkets and Carrefour's hypermarkets walked out in Brussels and in the country's southern region, Wallonia.
Workers at car manufacturer Audi also took industrial action, halting production.
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