ICC-B stresses practice of int'l trade, finance rules
International Chamber of Commerce-Bangladesh (ICC-B) President Mahbubur Rahman yesterday emphasised practice and adoption of various international trade and finance instruments, procedures and rules.
He also said by following Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits (UCP), banks across the world can voluntarily subscribe to a common set of rules.
The UCP introduces uniformity and predictability, and thus lowers costs, the ICC-B president told the inaugural session of a daylong workshop on 'International Trade Payment Practices' in Chittagong, according to a press release.
ICC-B in collaboration with German Technical Co-operation (GTZ), Germany, organised the workshop.
The ICC-B chief said among the various methods for settling international trade transactions, the most common and important method is the Documentary Credit, which has been in place since 1933. Its latest available version is UCP 600 that came into effect from July 1, 2007 and will remain in force for the next ten years.
Within South and Southeast Asia as well as the Middle East, Documentary Credits have been very popular, having recorded double-digit growth in usage annually over the last few years. These regions issue more than 25 percent of the world's Documentary Credits, Rahman said.
He said the International Standard Banking Practice (ISBP) is an important guideline for implementing the rules provided in the UCP. Participants in ICC seminars and workshops across the world have indicated that rejection rates have dropped due to the application of the practices that are detailed in the ISBP.
With the approval of UCP 600 in October 2006, it became mandatory to provide an updated version of the ISBP. Accordingly, ICC Banking Commission approved the ISBP 2007 in April last year.
Stressing the importance of capacity building of professionals, the ICC-B president said the workshops will provide participants with a solid understanding of the various international trade and finance instruments, procedures and rules.
He said participants will also learn about international contracts and payment terms and get an insight into the best method to structure secure trade transactions in order to optimise payment security and secure finance for trade from banks.
The means of dealing with payment problems will also be reviewed, he added.
Around 80 participants from readymade garment units and banks took part in the workshop, the release said.
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