????過去幾年中，全球經濟增速放緩削弱了中國出口市場中的需求，這不是什么秘密。國內產能過剩以及來自其他國家出口商的直接競爭是中國出口商最擔心的問題，這也不是什么秘密。中國制造企業面臨著競爭的升級以及出口銷售額和利潤下降的情況。

????中國出口商不經常公開探討，但私下里會認真交流的另一個重大問題是他們的海外應收賬款急劇增長，而且只升不降。實際情況是，中國出口商的壞賬對銷售額比例至少為5%。在成本上升、利潤下降的情況下，不斷地消化5%的損失并不是長久之計。

????要提高競爭力，中國出口商就必須對業務管理進行升級，以便在市場中立足。單靠以市場最低價出售產品就能獲得高額利潤的日子已經成為過去。新出現的眾多財務壓力集合在一起就會壓低出口商的利潤率，甚至讓它們慘遭淘汰。

????中國出口商在業務管理方面應該實施的一項根本性升級是它們出口貨物時的風險管理策略。中國出口商在賒銷方面的經驗以及對這種貿易方式的理解嚴重不足。他們并不熟悉海外那些采用賒銷方式的公司，因此在收回海外欠款時面臨著巨大的風險和挑戰。

????這些欠款中，很大一部分都源于目前處于吃緊的現金流狀況，出現這種局面的原因則是信貸緊張和海外市場需求下降。還有一部分欠款是打算空手套白狼的海外客戶故意為之。無論本意如何，一系列可識別的行為都能表明債務人想拖欠款項、甚至干脆不付款。

????本月，我將和大家分享一些“債務人的致命把戲”。這些把戲平淡無奇，每天客戶都會向我們反映這樣的問題。而且，和之前跟大家分享的“神話與現實”一樣，這些都是現實世界中的實際情況。那么，讓我們看看債務人的這些致命把戲中較為普通的幾個：

????債務人把戲之一：部分付款，不簽署購銷合同

????部分付款而不簽署購銷合同是債務人的慣用伎倆。買方只支付一部分貨款，然后就會表現得像付了全款一樣，全然不顧原先商定的價格。他們認為中國出口商會忍氣吞聲，接受他們支付的貨款。

????狡猾的海外買家也會用這種方法來重新壓價，此時他們早已下了訂單，貨物也早已運達。中國出口商的處境很糟糕，因為買方已經拿到了貨，而出口商在大多數情況下可能都沒有簽合同——這份合同可以在買方所在市場履行，因而不會讓他們陷入這種境地。在這種情況下，出口商陷于被動境地，通常只能任由買方宰割。

????債務人把戲之二：失去主要客戶/等待客戶付款

????為了不付款或者晚付款，買方經常使用的另一個伎倆是宣稱自己失去了一位主要客戶，因此無錢可付。套用同樣的辦法，債務人還可以說在他們的客戶付款前自己沒有支付能力。

????It is no secret that over the past few years, the global economy has undergone a slowdown causing a shrinking demand for China exports. It is also no secret that overcapacity problems in China and exporters from other countries competing directly with China exporters are top-line concerns for China exporters. China manufacturers have seen their competition increase while export sales and profits shrink.

????Another top-line problem that is not frequently discussed openly, but is discussed in quiet, concerned whispers among China exporters is the value of the exporter’s uncollected overseas receivables has grown dramatically, and is only increasing. The reality is that exporters are facing a minimum 5% bad-debt-to-sales ratio. When faced with increased costs and shrinking profits, continuously absorbing a loss of 5% is unsustainable.

????To improve their competitive edge, China exporters must upgrade business management practices to remain viable in the marketplace. The old days of exporters making big profits by simply selling at the lowest price are gone. Too many new financial pressures are combining causing profit margins for the exporters to shrink or forcing them to go out of business.

????One fundamental upgrade to business management practices that exporters should apply is their risk management strategies when selling into overseas markets. Sales by using OA terms is an area where China exporters are deeply lacking expertise and understanding. Business conducted in overseas markets using OA terms is not a business discipline that exporters are familiar with. As a result exporters are exposed to huge risks and face challenges with collection of their overseas debts.

????Much of that debt is the offspring of the current cash flow crunch born of tight credit and reduced demand in the overseas markets. Some is the result of deliberate attempts by overseas customers to fraudulently obtain products without paying. Regardless of their intent, there are a number of recognizable debtor actions that indicate an overseas customer is seeking to delay or avoid payment.

????This month I’ll share with you some of the Deadly Games that Debtors Play. These games are commonplace occurrences that we hear every day from our clients and, like the previous Myths and Realities shared with you, are real-world situations. So let’s look at some of the more commonplace “Deadly Games Debtors Play”:

????Debtor Game #1: Partial Payment Without Seller Agreement

????Partial payment without seller agreement is a typical technique debtors often attempt. The buyer simply will make a partial payment and then behave as if that is all they are going to pay in spite of the original agreed price. They assume the China exporter will give up and simply accept this as the debtor’s payment for the merchandise.

????This is also a technique that is used by a crafty overseas buyer to re-negotiate for a lower price long after the order was placed and the shipment has arrived. The China exporter is in a bad situation because the buyer has the goods and the exporter - most likely - does not have a contract to protect themselves from this situation that is enforceable in the buyer’s market. So the exporter is now stuck in a bad situation and usually is at the mercy of the buyer.

????Debtor Game #2: Lost Major Customer / Awaiting Customer Payment

????Another frequently used technique to avoid or postpone payment is where the buyer claims that they lost a major customer and thus cannot afford to pay. A common variant on this same technique is for the debtor to claim inability to pay until their customer pays for the merchandise.