The companies, which have organised themselves as the Chittagong Feeder Trade Committee (CFTC), took the move after the High Court stayed a 130 dollar surcharge they imposed in June on every six-metre-long (20 foot) container transported by the ships.

The companies said the surcharge was to recover costs from "huge" congestion at the port.

"The ruling made all of us angry. We imposed the surcharge because we were bleeding red due to congestion at Chittagong Port," Shahed Chowdhury, a representative of the shipping companies, said.

"Our ships today have not loaded any export cargo from Chittagong. Simultaneously, no import cargo bound for Chittagong Port is being loaded at ports in Singapore, Colombo and Klang," he said.

All but one company -- HRC, the largest Bangladeshi-owned shipping company with 10 ships -- took part in the protest.

Situated in southeastern Bangladesh, Chittagong is the nation's biggest port.

In the year ended June 30, the port handled 90 per cent of the country's 24-billion-dollar foreign trade.

"An impasse has been created and if it persists it will be a disaster for Bangladesh because the suspension will affect more than 75 per cent of our export and import trade," the chairman said.

The move has alarmed the country's garment manufacturers, whose exports account for over 75 per cent of the country's 10.5-billion-dollar export trade and who been enjoying a recent boom in business.

"It will be a catastrophe if they don't withdraw the suspension order now," leading garment manufacturer M. A. Tayeb said.

Chittagong port chairman said the country's commerce and shipping ministers would hold a meeting with the companies Sunday to resolve the crisis.

Officials said growth in the country's export trade caused congestion as authorities lacked infrastructure facilities to clear containers immediately from port yards.

In 2005, the port handled 783,352 six-metre-long (20 ft) containers, up from 688,773 a year earlier.

Bangladesh exports rose 21.6 percent to 10.53 billion dollars in year ended June 30, powered by a record 24 percent export rise in textiles shipments.