Ahmedabad: Gujarat-based textile and chemicals exporters are grappling with delayed export proceeds as several African countries face a shortage of US dollars, leaving payments stalled for months despite goods being delivered. Exporters say the issue has persisted for nearly two-and-a-half months, tightening working capital cycles and raising compliance concerns.Industry executives attribute the bottleneck to high crude oil prices, which have strained foreign exchange reserves in several import-dependent economies and slowed the pace of trade settlements. As a result, buyers are taking longer than usual to remit payments, even when contracts and documentation are in place.Textile exporters say that although some orders are backed by partial advances, the balance payments are increasingly getting delayed well beyond agreed credit periods once shipments reach destination ports.Vinod Mittal, director of a denim manufacturing and exporting firm, said, “Many countries are facing a dollar shortage, and that is directly delaying payments. We typically take a 30% advance, but after goods reach the destination, we have no option but to wait. Over the past three months, delayed payments have clearly risen.”Chemicals exporters are also experiencing similar stress, with industry representatives pointing to additional payment challenges in Bangladesh.Ankit Patel, vice-chairman of CHEMEXCIL, said, “Several chemicals exporters have been affected by delayed payments after shipments. The problem has been particularly severe for exporters dealing with Bangladesh despite stable forex reserves there.”Exporters are also encountering complications even in transactions supported by letters of credit, traditionally considered safer instruments for international trade.Anil Jain, chairman of the international trade committee of the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), said, “Exporters ship goods on the basis of an LC, but in some African countries we are seeing LCs getting held up due to various conditions.”To ease compliance pressure, the Reserve Bank of India has extended the export realisation and repatriation timeline from nine months to 15 months for eligible goods, software, and services, providing temporary relief from legal penalties and the risk of caution-listing while proceeds remain delayed.
