1. A Letter of Credit (or LC) is one of the major pillars on which International Trade stands. a) What is a Letter of Credit? b) With the aid of a diagram, explain the LC procedure. c) Explain to the CEO of Mbo Limited (a company in Ghana) which wants to buy large quantities of White Refined Granulated Sugar from Tiffany Anderson Group Ltd (a company in Brazil) why the LC is the most acceptable method to both the exporter and importer in a transaction such as he is about to undertake.

A Letter of Credit (or LC)

There are various types of letter of credit (LC) that prevail in export/import trade transactions. These include Commercial, Export / Import, Transferable and Non-Transferable, Revocable and Irrevocable, Stand-by, Confirmed, and Unconfirmed, Revolving, Back to Back, Red Clause, Green Clause, Sight, Deferred Payment, and Direct Pay LC.  We can explain it by using the following illustrated examples:

a) Mbo Limited's bank can issue a letter of credit to Tiffany Anderson Group Ltd.'s bank a credit guarantee by which Mbo's bank guarantees that Mbo Limited will settle Tiffany Anderson Group Ltd in full for the amount involved in their trade relationship.  It is usually used by importers and exporters to settle trade credit.  It is the most acceptable means of settling debts across national boundaries.

b) A diagram is attached to show how a letter of credit works.  The procedures are detailed below:

A.A Sales Contract is established between the seller (exporter) and the buyer(importer).

B.The importer makes a request to its bank for issuance of letter of credit.

C.The importer’s bank issues a letter of credit to the exporter’s bank.

D.The exporter’s bank advises on the letter of credit to the exporter.

E.The exporter presents export documents (bill of lading and invoice) to its bank.

F.The exporter’s bank delivers the documents to the importer’s bank.

G.The importer’s bank debits the account of the importer for the stated amount after confirming that the documents are in order.

H.The importer’s bank pays the purchase price to the exporter’s bank.

I.The exporter’s bank credits the exporter’s bank to show payment.  This ends the transaction.

c. The letter of credit guarantees both the Mbo Limited and Tiffany Anderson Group Ltd.  It guarantees and ensures that payment for goods are not paid to Tiffany Anderson Group Ltd until there is evidence that the correct goods and quantity have been shipped by Tiffany Anderson Group Ltd (through the bill of lading).  It also assures Tiffany Anderson Group Ltd of payment for shipped goods since the documents cannot be released to Mbo Limited unless Mbo Limited's account had been debited and the money transmitted to Tiffany Anderson Group Ltd through its bank.

Explanation:

As explained above.