New Domestic Trade Guidelines Released, Textile Industry Payment Terms Crisis Awaits Resolution

The construction of a unified national market is entering a practical phase. On May 8, under the guidance of four ministries including the Ministry of Commerce and the National Development and Reform Commission, 17 national industry associations jointly released the 'Domestic Trade Transaction Guidelines (Trial)'. This document directly targets long-standing issues in domestic trade such as non-standard transactions, excessively long payment terms, and difficult receivables. For industries including textiles, light manufacturing, and building materials, this means existing trading habits may face systemic adjustments.

Impressive Domestic Trade Data, Yet Pain Points Persist

According to public data from the National Bureau of Statistics, total retail sales of consumer goods in 2025 exceeded 50 trillion yuan, and the total circulation of production materials approached 100 trillion yuan, with over 180 million market entities. These figures highlight the scale advantages of the domestic market. However, beneath the surface, problems remain: long payment terms and difficult receivables have long plagued small and medium enterprises. In the textile sector, payment terms between fabric factories and apparel brands typically range from 60 to 90 days, sometimes extending to 120 days, directly increasing capital turnover costs.

New Guidelines: Full-Chain Standardization from Contracts to Payments

The 'Domestic Trade Transaction Guidelines (Trial)' is not a mandatory law but an industry self-discipline standard. It covers the entire lifecycle of a transaction: from contract formation and goods delivery acceptance to payment term setting and payment methods, as well as regulating commercial behavior. For textile enterprises, the most direct benefit lies in payment term management—the guidelines explicitly encourage shortening payment terms and optimizing payment processes. This provides a 'industry consensus' reference for upstream and downstream enterprises in negotiations.

Transmission Effects on the Textile Industry

Both the China National Textile and Apparel Council and the China Textile Commerce Association are among the 17 issuing parties, giving the guidelines natural authority in the textile sector. From Keqiao to Shengze, from Nantong to home textile clusters, SMEs are the main body of domestic trade but also the direct bearers of payment term risks. The implementation of the new rules is expected to accelerate the establishment of an internal credit system. Buyers who chronically delay payments will face negative records in the industry association's credit evaluation. For companies transitioning from export to domestic sales, these guidelines provide a standardized operational process, reducing transaction friction costs.

Practical Recommendations

For Buyers - Promptly have legal and procurement departments study the guidelines' details on contract terms and acceptance standards to avoid disputes due to non-compliance. - Evaluate the payment term structure of existing suppliers and proactively shorten terms to within 60 days to secure better purchase prices or priority supply rights. - Establish an internal payment ledger to ensure timely reconciliation and payment processes under the guidelines, maintaining corporate credit ratings.

For Textile Factories and Traders - When signing new domestic trade contracts, directly cite the guidelines' standard terms as contract appendices, clearly defining acceptance deadlines and penalty rates for overdue payments. - Utilize the industry association's credit information platform to conduct background checks on partners' historical transaction records, prioritizing clients with high credit ratings. - For orders with payment terms exceeding 90 days, adopt a 'staged payment' or 'cash on delivery plus balance' hybrid model to reduce capital occupation risks.