What are the advantages and disadvantages of counter trade?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of counter trade?

The advantages of counter trade are:(1)It helps a country to deal with foreign exchange shortages.(2)It can be used to promote exports.(3)It can be used to reduce uncertainty regarding export receipts.(4)It is used to bypass an international price agreement.(5)It may help those nations,with serious debt problems to continue to import goods while,in effect,concealing export earnings from creditors.The disadvantages of counter trade are:(1) By concealing the real prices and costs of transactions it may conceal and help perpetuate economic inefficiencies in the market place.(2)Companies may suffer losses because they could not get rid of products of poor quality.(3)It may be considered as a form of protectionism.