Bangladeshi exporters are in trouble as the world’s leading shipping companies – MSC, Maersk, Hapag Lloyd, One Line have suspended shipping goods to Russian ports. Some goods are in Chittagong port.
Bangladeshi exporters who have lately shipped goods to Russia but have yet to get payment are likewise worried. Because their funds are frozen. Although the amount of money and export earnings from Russia is not very large, each firm is experiencing a major issue.
Several international firms from the US and Europe have halted operations in Russia. The international transaction system Swift has prohibited 12 transactions in Russia and two transactions in Belarus in Bangkok, which will take effect on March 12 at the request of the West. Bangladesh’s trade with Russia has been harmed as a result of all of this.
In the fiscal year 2020-21, Bangladesh traded $1.14 billion with Russia. Bangladesh’s garment exports accounted for $590 million of this total.
On February 23, a garment manufacturer called Green Life Knitx sent a range of products to Russia, including T-shirts and sweatshirts valued 235,000 rupees (about Rs. 2 crore). They are unable to transmit the required paperwork to the Russian buyer’s approved Alpha Bank of Russia after sending the export invoice. This is due to the fact that international courier companies refuse to deliver items to Russia. Green Life Nittex has postponed the production of 200,000 purchase orders in Russia due to the uncertainty.
“Russian buyers have assured us,” the factory’s managing director Halim Biswas told Prothom Alo on Saturday. However, I’ve put a one- or two-week hold on the production of the ongoing buy order. We’ll keep an eye on things and make the best decision we can.
Russia is the destination of 2.5 percent of the country’s total garment exports. In the first seven months of the current financial year (July-January), Bangladesh’s garment export revenue stood at 2.399 billion. Of this, 420 million worth of clothing went to Russia.
The Tusuka Group is not getting money by exporting garments directly to Russia for about 600,000 and through Poland for 321,000. At present, 2.78 million worth of garments are being produced at the Tusuca factory, which is supposed to go to Russia. The company exports garments worth about 6 million a year to Russia.
Tusuka chairman Arshad Jamal told Prothom Alo , “There is nothing to be optimistic about the ongoing procurement.”
