Chinese road haulage companies have suffered from a spate of armed robberies in recent months, especially in the south of the country, according to an article on the China Supply Chain Council website.

The head of the Youyi Logistics based in Fuyang city, Anhui province, claimed his company had suffered losses of around Rmb1m from highway robbery over a period of two months. He said that many logistics companies have been robbed in the area around Shaoguan, in the northern part of Guangdong province, by people wielding broadswords and other weapons.

Local media reported that there was also a serious problem on the Heyuan and Huizhou sections of the expressway linking Guangdong to neighbouring Jiangxi province.

Trucks carrying medicines and garments made in the south seem to be particularly vulnerable. For example, the high price of Type 2 diabetes medicine and its ready availability in shops make it particularly attractive to robbers.

Many logistics companies are uninsured because the premiums are so high, so the robberies are straining client relationships, according to the article.

“We only make a few hundred yuan per load, and insurance costs a few thousand yuan,” said the boss of Huachuan Logistics, surnamed Shen. “The goods themselves are only worth a few million, and the insurance is three or four thousand.”

Last month, according to Xinhua, police in Anhui arrested a gang of robbers who were operating on expressways across five provinces, seizing loads worth tens of millions of yuan.