The goods the ship brought from Pakistan this time

The container ship MV Yuan Jiang Fa Zhong arrived at the port on Saturday afternoon, one day later than scheduled.

This is the second time that the ship has arrived at the outer anchorage of Chattogram port from Karachi, Pakistan, carrying container goods.

The cargo brought from Pakistan this time includes the highest quantity of refined sugar and the mineral dolomite.

Direct container shipping between Karachi Port in Pakistan and Chattogram began in the second week of November this year. The first shipment brought 370 containers, of which 297 were from Pakistan and the rest were from the United Arab Emirates. This time, 811 containers were brought, of which 86 per cent came from Pakistan.

The largest quantity of goods brought from Pakistan this time is refined sugar, with 285 containers carrying 148,200 bags of sugar, totaling around 7,500 tonnes. The sugar was brought by food processing companies like Pran-RFL, Shehzad Food Products, Savoy Ice Cream Factory, and Broadway International.

The second largest import from Pakistan is dolomite, which arrived in 171 containers. This raw material, used in the glass industry, was brought by Nasir Float Glass and Akij Glass Industries.

Another product imported from Pakistan is soda ash, which arrived in 138 containers. This raw material, used in industries, was brought by Nasir Float Glass and other companies.

In addition to these, 46 containers of fabric rolls were imported by garment factories, which are fully export-oriented. 18 containers of potatoes were also imported, and P&P Trading from Joypurhat brought 20 containers of sugarcane molasses.

Along with these, scrap iron, resin, and three-piece products were also imported.

In addition to Pakistan, products were also imported from the United Arab Emirates. These include food products, dates, lubricating oil, and spare parts. Similarly, 10 containers of sugar were also imported from the UAE.

Earlier, goods from Pakistan were imported through Sri Lanka or Singapore, with containers being unloaded at these ports before being reloaded onto ships heading for Chattogram, resulting in longer delivery times.

However, with the launch of direct shipping services, goods are now arriving in just 10 days, which has significantly reduced the time for importing raw materials for the export-oriented garment industry.

The local representative of the MV Yuan Jiang Fa Zhong ship is Regency Lines Limited, an affiliate of Karnaphuli Limited.

Executive director of Karnaphuli Limited, Anis Uddoula, told Prothom Alo that with direct shipping, export-oriented industries are receiving raw materials quickly, leading to an increase in the rate of container transport.