Fashion
Lightering vessel ops disrupted in Bangladesh amid fuel shortage
Lighterage operators complained that diesel supply from state-owned depots has dropped to nearly a fourth of the daily demand, delaying the offloading of mother vessels at the outer anchorage and affecting the entire supply chain of industrial raw materials and imported goods.
Lightering vessel operations at Bangladesh’s Chittagong Port have been hit due to a severe fuel shortage triggered by the Iran war.
Diesel supply has dropped to a fourth of the daily demand, delaying the offloading of mother vessels at the outer anchorage and hitting the supply chain of industrial raw materials and imported goods.
Offloading from mother vessels is being prioritised to avoid demurrages.
The Bangladesh Water Transport Coordination Cell (BWTCC), which regulates around 1,200 lightering vessels, the daily requirement for ships booked to offload cargo is nearly 250,000 litres.
Marine fuel dealers, however, are currently providing only 60,000 to 70,000 litres.
Operators said they are trying to prioritise the offloading process from mother vessels to avoid heavy demurrages.
However, once the goods are loaded, the vessels lack sufficient fuel to reach their inland destinations or return to the port for the next shipment, according to domestic media outlets.
BWTCC has written to the relevant ministries seeking an urgent solution, but operators say they are yet to get a response.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
The relief covers a wide basket of chemicals, polymers, and intermediates used in fibre production and textile processing, with concessional duty rates expected to lower the effective cost of key inputs. This is particularly significant as upstream feedstocks such as PTA, MEG, and polyester melt have remained volatile due to crude-linked movements.
Sanjay K Jain, chairman of the ICC National Textile Committee told Fibre*Fashion, “The decision would create a positive sentiment. Both pricing and availability should improve for the industry.” He noted that the trickle-down impact would be visible across textiles as many of these inputs are core raw materials.
The textile trade narrative is shifting from tariff optics to execution realities.
While Bangladesh gains a conditional US access lever, structural constraints limit immediate upside.
India, though exposed in the US, holds strategic resilience via EU diversification.
The next cycle will be decided not by policy announcements, but by supply chain adaptability and shipment reliability.
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The China-Kenya trade corridor has been relaunched to boost small and medium enterprises (SMEs) participation in bilateral trade by Standard Chartered Bank.
The China-Kenya trade corridor has been relaunched to boost SME participation in bilateral trade by Standard Chartered Bank.
The initiative offers better financing access, lower transaction costs, and faster cross-border payments.
By promoting RMB usage, SMEs can achieve up to two per cent savings while benefiting from near-instant settlements and improved cash flow efficiency.
The initiative is designed to empower local SMEs through improved access to financing, lower transaction costs, and direct connectivity with Chinese markets, particularly in manufacturing and green energy sectors.
Richard Li, group head of global chinese at Standard Chartered, said, “The solution promotes the use of RMB that can deliver tangible benefits, including lower foreign exchange costs, improved working capital efficiency and better alignment of cash flows.” He added that the solution enables small entrepreneurs engaged in Sino-Africa trade to manage multiple currencies, access reliable financing, and navigate complex regulatory environments.
Originally launched in China in 2006, the initiative reflects the bank’s continued commitment to supporting SMEs in their international expansion. Bernard Kombo, head of SME Banking at Standard Chartered Kenya, noted that businesses can achieve up to two per cent annual savings by using RMB for working capital financing.
Kombo further highlighted that the corridor leverages a cross-border international payments system, enabling settlement within 15 seconds, significantly faster than traditional methods that take one to two days.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (JP)
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