国贸第七章.docx

1、国贸第七章Chapter 7 International Trade Terms7.1 Trade Terms and International Rules and practices on Trade Terms7.1.1 DefinitionTrade Terms: It is a certain kind of international trade practice that divides up the costs, risks and responsibilities of the transport of the goods between the buyer and the

2、seller.The Role of Price Terms The use of price terms greatly simplifies the process of negotiation and preparation of the contract between the seller and the buyer and saves time and cost of the transaction. They are really advantageous and cost-saving tools. The exporter and the importer need not

3、undergo a lengthy bargaining about the detailed conditions of each transaction. Once they have agreed on a trade term like FOB, they can sell and buy at FOB without discussing who will be responsible for the freight, cargo insurance, and other costs and risks. Using these terms can also simplify the

4、 paper-work of preparation for the trade contract. Only a trade term selected could make clear the responsibilities of the parties and the contract could avoid being overloaded with details.In addition, it will be much easier for the seller to calculate the cost and quote the price when using a cert

5、ain price term. Sometimes, the parties could invoke the international rules and practices on price terms to settle the disputes which happened in the implementation of the trade contract.7.1.2 International Rules and Practices on Price Terms Price terms have been used in trade practice for many year

6、s. However, as different countries and merchants may have different interpretations of the terms, misunderstandings and controversies occurred frequently. In order to clear up the confusion, some international organizations made efforts to work out the uniform rules on price terms. The following are

7、 three major international rules and practices on price terms drawn up by different organizations.Warsaw-Oxford Rules 1932 This rule was drafted by the Association of International Law in 1932. It contains 21 clauses, which only stipulate the nature of CIF contract, and the costs, risks and responsi

8、bilities which should be borne by the seller or the buyer. Because it only includes one sort of price term, its application is limited very much. More and more merchants discarded it and turn to new rules with the development of international trade.Revised American Foreign Trade Definitions 1941This

9、 rule was made out by nine American commercial organizations in 1941. It is a set of price terms which were used frequently in US trade at that time. Nowadays, it is still used in North America although it had been published for more than sixty years. It contains six sorts of price terms. (1) EX ( p

10、oint of origin), such as Ex Factory, Ex Mill, Ex Mine, etc. (2) FOB-Free On Board. It stipulates 6 specific terms as follows : FOB ( named inland carrier at named inland of departure) FOB (named inland carrier at named inland of departure) Freight Prepaid To (named point of exportation ) FOB (named

11、inland carrier at named inland of departure) Freight Allowed To (named point) FOB ( named inland carrier at named point of exportation) FOB Vessel (named port of shipment) FOB ( named inland point in country of importation) (3) FAS-Free Along Side (named port of shipment). (4) C&F-Cost and Freight (

12、named point of destination). (5) CIF-Cost, Insurance and Freight (named point of destination). (6) EX DOCK ( named port of importation).Incoterms 2000 Incoterms (International Commercial Terms) was developed by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in Paris, France. The purpose of Incoterms is

13、 to provide a set of international rules for the interpretation of the most commonly used trade terms in foreign trade. Thus, the uncertainties of different interpretations of such terms in different countries can be avoided or at least reduced to a considerable extent. Frequently, parties to a cont

14、ract are unaware of the different trading practices in their respective countries. This can give rise to misunderstandings, disputes and litigations, with all the waste of time and money that this entails. In order to remedy these problems, the International Chamber of Commerce first published in 19

15、36 a set of international rules for the interpretation of trade terms. These rules were known as Incoterms 1936. Amendments and additions were later made in 1953, 1967, 1976, 1980, 1990 and 2000 in order to bring the rules in line with current international trade practices. It should be stressed tha

16、t the scope of Incoterms is limited to matters relating to the rights and obligations of the parties to the contract of sale with respect to the delivery of goods sold (in the sense of tangible goods, not including intangible goods such as computer softwares). Incoterms deal with the questions relat

17、ed to the delivery of the goods from the seller to the buyer. This includes the carriage of goods, export and import clearance responsibilities, who pays for what, and who bears risks for the condition of the goods at different locations within the transport process. Incoterms are always used with a

18、 geographical location and do not deal with transfer of rifle. The most recent version - Incoterms 2000 - divide 13 terms into four groups as follows: Group E-Departure : EXW-Ex Works (. named place) Group F-Main Carriage Unpaid: FCA-Free Carder (. named place) FASFree Alongside Ship (. named port o

19、f shipment) FOB-Free on Board (. named port of shipment) Group C-Main Carriage Paid: CFR-Cost and Freight (. named port of destination) CIF-Cost, Insurance and Freight (. named port of destination) CPT-Carriage Paid to (. named place of destination) CIP-Carriage and Insurance Paid to (. named place

20、of destination) Group D-Arrival: DAF-Delivered at Frontier (. named place) DES-Delivered Ex Ship . named port of destination) DEQ-Delivered Ex Quay (. named port of destination) DDU-Delivered Duty Unpaid (. named place of destination) DDP-Delivered Duty Paid (. named place of destination)7.2 The 13

21、Terms in Incoterms 2000 Among the 13 terms in Incoterms 2000, there are six terms commonly used in practice. They are FOB, CFR, CIF, FCA, CPT, CIP.7.2.1 FOB, CFR, CIF 1. FOB Free on Board means that the seller delivers when the goods pass the ships rail at the named port of shipment. This means that

22、 the buyer has to bear all costs and risks of loss of or damage to the goods from that point.The FOB term requires the seller to clear the goods for export.This term can be used only for sea or inland waterway transport. If the parties do not intend to deliver the goods across the ships rail, the FC

23、A term should be used. The sellers obligations are as follows: Obtaining export license or other official documents and going through all the customs formalities for the export of the goods. Delivering the goods .on board the vessel designated by the buyer at the port of shipment within the period s

24、tipulated in the contract and giving the buyer sufficient notice that the goods have been so delivered. Bearing all risks of loss of or damage to the goods and all costs relating to the goods until such time as they have passed the given ships rail at the named port of shipment. Providing the commer

25、cial documents or its equivalent electronic message to the buyer. The buyers obligations are as follows: Contracting at his own expense for the carriage of the goods from the named port of shipment and giving the seller sufficient notice of the vessel name, loading point and required delivery time.

26、Obtaining import license or other official documents and going through all the customs formalities for the import of the goods. Bearing all risks of loss of or damage to the goods and all costs relating to the goods from the time they have passed the given ships rail at the named port of shipment. T

27、aking delivery of the goods and making payment to the seller.When adopting the FOB terms, the following points should be paid attention to:(1) Division of costs and risksThe loss of goods through fire, theft, or other means can occur at any time: prior to delivery, during transit or inspection, or a

28、fter delivery. The passage of risk is the point in time when the buyer becomes responsible for loss of or damage to the goods. It determines who is responsible for the loss or damage to the goods. In most cases, the loss or damage will be covered by insurance. Even so, it is important to determine w

29、hether the buyer or seller is responsible for obtaining the insurance.To begin With, passage of risk is defined as the shifting of responsibility for loss or damage from the seller to the buyer. This means that once the risk passes, the buyer must pay the agreed-upon price for the goods involved. Th

30、e buyer must then absorb the cost of the losses or lodge a claim against his insurer. According to Incoterms 2000, the passing point of risk in FOB, CFR and CIF is the ships rail. (2) Variations of FOBHowever, as the loading of the goods is a continuous process, it is hard to use ships rail as a poi

31、nt to divide responsibilities and costs. To avoid and dispute, there are several variations of the terms:FOB Liner Terms: It means that the ship will bear the expenses for unloading and the seller doesnt have to pay loading expenses. FOB Under Tackle: This term only requires the seller to bear the e

32、xpenses for sending and placing the goods on the wharf within the reach of the ship s tackle. Loading expenses incurred thereafter will be borne by the buyer.FOB Stowed: The word stow means the act of putting cargo tidily in the hold. This term requires the seller to assume all the expenses for loading the goods into the ships hold including stowing expenses.FOB Trimmed: When we say trim a vessel, it means we level the bulk cargo s