By Our Correspondent
LAHORE- The Executive Committee of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has expressed grave concern about the critically deteriorating performance of international shipping lines, which may cause severe financial losses to Pakistani exporters.
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The issue was brought to the forefront during a meeting of the LCCI Executive Committee presided over by LCCI President Mian Abuzar, Senior Vice President Engineer Khalid Usman and Vice President Shahid Nazir Chaudhry.
The grave concerns were raised by EC Member Syed Salman Ali, who highlighted the unsustainable practices of shipping companies.
He informed the Executive Committee that the core of the issue, as presented to the committee, is the massive discrepancy between the transit times promised by shipping lines at the time of booking and the actual delivery times. Exporters are being given commitments of 15-18 days for key destinations like Jeddah and 35-38 days for North African ports. However, after shipments are dispatched, these timelines are being “arbitrarily extended by 10 to 25 days without prior notice or valid explanation. This unpredictable delay is crippling for exporters who operate on strict deadlines with their international buyers.
The LCCI Executive Committee feared of the devastating effect caused by these delays. LCCI office-bearers and EC members said that the most significant long-term damage is to Pakistan’s reliability as a trading partner. Overseas buyers, frustrated by inconsistent delivery schedules, are reportedly losing confidence and shifting their orders to competing countries like India, Bangladesh, and Vietnam, which offer more predictable logistics.
They said that the exporters are facing serious cash flow problems. Payments are delayed until goods are received, tying up capital and making it difficult to finance new orders and raw materials.
The situation is exacerbated by the State Bank of Pakistan, which pressures exporters to ensure the realization of export proceeds within a strict 45-day timeframe, a target that becomes impossible to meet when shipments are stuck at sea or transshipment ports for weeks beyond the promised date.
The LCCI Executive Committee unanimously demanded that the current situation is serious and threatens Pakistan’s export competitiveness. They called for urgent government intervention to safeguard national interest.
They demanded establishment of a strong regulatory authority to oversee the operations of shipping lines. This authority should be tasked with ensuring that carriers adhere to their committed schedules and that goods are reloaded at transit ports within the promised timeframe. The committee said that without such strict oversight and accountability for shipping lines, Pakistan’s export sector will continue to suffer.
LCCI President Mian Abuzar Shad said that this is no longer just a commercial inconvenience, it is a national trade emergency. He said that the country is losing hard-earned foreign exchange and the trust of international buyers. The government must step in immediately to regulate this sector and protect Pakistani exporters from these unfair practices.
