ROME (Bloomberg) - The second day of a strike by truck drivers paralysed road traffic across Italy, leading to gasoline shortages and causing Fiat SpA, the country's biggest manufacturer, to suspend production at its Italian plants.

Fiat was forced to lay off 22,000 workers, and if the strike drags on, all 50,000 of its staff in Italy would be let go temporarily, the carmaker said in a statement distributed by the Italian exchange. Many service stations across the country also shut because they could not receive gasoline.

Transport Minister Alessandro Bianchi "wasn't able to present any real new initiative," said Paolo Ugge, head of the FAI, the biggest drivers' union, after abandoning talks with government officials today in Rome.

Truck drivers are blocking roadways across the country to protest the increase in gasoline prices and the government's failure to implement measures to cut operating costs. The impasse means the planned five-day strike may drag on through to December 14, raising the possibility of disruptions to airline departures and further delays to foods deliveries.

"The fact that one single labor dispute has such a far- reaching effect on the production system and on the Italian economy contributes to drastically reducing the competitiveness of our country," Fiat said in a statement distributed by the Italian exchange.

The strike was taking its toll on motorists, who faced choked roadways and a dearth of open gasoline stations. Service stations in the center of Rome began shutting down yesterday afternoon as they ran out of the fuel, which is transported by about 25,000 truck drivers in the country. Gasoline supplies for ambulances and other emergency services were also running low.

"If this goes on, there won't be a drop of gasoline left in the country," Roberto Di Vincenzo, secretary general of gas station operators union Fegica-Cisl, said in a statement.

Crude oil prices rose to a record $99.29 a barrel on November 21 and have gone up by a third in the past six months. It now costs about 608.8 euros for drivers to fill their truck's tank, compared with 561.3 euros last year, unions say.