STUTTGART (dpa-AFX) - The collapse of the highway bridge in the port of the US city of Baltimore has had no effect on the car manufacturer Porsche. A spokesman for the company said that the port of Baltimore was being served and could continue to do so without disruption.

A spokesperson for Mercedes-Benz said on Thursday that the port there is used for vehicle imports alongside several other ports in the USA, including Brunswick (Georgia) and Charleston (South Carolina). "We are in close contact with our logistics service providers and are continuously monitoring the situation. Together with our transport partners, we are reviewing and adapting our delivery routes." The supply of parts to the Tuscaloosa (Alabama) plant was not affected by the incident. The Mercedes-Benz spokesperson emphasized: "The incident has no impact on vehicle exports from the USA."

Several manufacturers have terminals through which they load vehicles; some companies are fortunate that their terminal is located in front of the accident site and remains accessible; for others, it will take an undetermined amount of time. According to a report in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, the Mercedes-Benz terminal is located behind the bridge and is therefore now cut off from shipping traffic.

On Tuesday night, the approximately 290-metre-long container ship "Dali" rammed into a pillar of the four-lane Francis Scott Key Bridge, causing the more than 2.5-kilometre-long structure to collapse. Following the accident, access for ships to one of the most important ports on the American east coast is blocked. Several media outlets had previously reported on the issue, including "Stuttgarter Zeitung" and "Stuttgarter Nachrichten"./ols/DP/jha