Using one company that you trust to handle shipments from beginning to end is the best way to streamline a supply chain. That means developing a relationship and taking advantage of the expertise they can offer. Shippers should consider the pros and cons of the type [...]
Lunar New Year Holiday Closings Approaching As the Lunar New Year Holiday draws near, many U.S. business who rely on Asian manufacturing have increased their orders to ensure they have inventory on hand before factories in Asia close. The surge of cargo coming out of Asia [...]
A Blank Sailing, sometimes referred to as Void Sailing, happens when an ocean line service operator decides to cancel a call or skip a particular port, region, or possibly an entire leg on the scheduled route. Why would an ocean carrier have a vessel skip part [...]
One key piece of information needed to have goods cleared by U.S Customs & Border Protection (CBP) is the HTSUS code for each of the products being imported. The HTSUS code, or classification, is based on many different factors including what the product is, what it [...]
LET’S CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING SCENARIO A company imports seasonal merchandise, such as Christmas decorations, and most of the product is sold. However, due to lack of demand, some remaining inventory may not have been sold, even at a discounted price. If it is financially feasible for [...]
Simply put, Dwell is the time that cargo containers, chassis equipment, or providers spend waiting along the transport. “Vessel dwell time” is the time a ship spends at port securing the vessel, discharging or loading cargo, and other activities. "Terminal dwell time" refers to the time [...]
As an importer in the United States, your company has a legal obligation to ensure the information presented to U.S. Customs on your entries is accurate – even if you have a Customshouse broker acting on your behalf. The following are 10 Best Practices for ensuring [...]
Demurrage is charged while the container is still at the port. Detention is outside the port no matter full or empty. To give you an example, imagine that a shipper or consignee has seven ‘free’ days once his or her container arrives at a port before [...]
There are approximately 14,000 active Licensed Customs Brokers in the United States - but what exactly, do they actually do? Licensed Customs Brokers (LCB), also known as Licensed Customhouse Brokers (LCHB), are individuals, corporations, partnerships, or associations authorized by the U.S. Federal government to [...]
In early 2018, the United States Trade Representative (USTR), at the direction of the President, began rolling out several rounds of Section 301 tariffs targeting products manufactured in China. These additional tariffs were published in four lists and range from 7.5% to 25%. Importers, [...]