Incoterms are standard terms that help two parties (a buyer and a seller involved in an international transaction) determine precisely who pays for transportation, who pays for import duties, who manages documents, and who takes what … [Read more...]
Consolidating Small Orders in China before Shipment
A reader asked me an interesting question. I am reproducing a part of it, with all identifiers removed: We are getting to the point where we are doing about a container each month where each container is a mixture of anywhere from 5 - 15 … [Read more...]
VAT Rebate for Exporters in China: How Does It Work?
Note added in October 2018: The full VAT rate is now 16% (not 17%). To see a graphical representation of the VAT and VAT rebate flows, see this post. Most importers buy their goods under FOB terms and don't need to worry … [Read more...]
Do Chinese Factories Really Migrate to Inland Provinces?
One of the very clear trends over the past 15 years in China has been the migration of exporting factories from the Pearl River Delta to the whole coast, and then (to a much lesser extent) to land-locked areas. However, my prediction is … [Read more...]
Future Trends in Supply Chain Management
Last week I had the good fortune of attending a seminar by John Benito on the subject of The Future of Supply Chain Management -- Adapting technology to improve business efficiency and performance. I took notes about John's most … [Read more...]
Reviewing Samples in China to Save Time & Money
A reader asked me recently how to reduce their Fedex/DHL/UPS bill. They spend thousands of dollars every month just for receiving samples to approve. The good news is, there are ways to reduce that cost. And my company already provides … [Read more...]
Do Importers NEED Trading Companies to Buy in China?
A reader asked me an interesting question: I am really disappointed and fed up from the dishonest way of doing business: changing prices in the last moment, late deliveries and all the other tricks that were mentioned in your blog. In … [Read more...]
Using the High Speed Train Network to Move Inside China
I just took the newly opened high-speed train (gaotie / 高铁) line between Shenzhen and Xiamen. And I have been riding other lines regularly, around Guangzhou and around Shanghai/Ningbo. Wikipedia provides solid information about the … [Read more...]
Packaging: How to Protect your Shipments Effectively?
Many importers forget to specify how their products should be packed. And, every year, tons of products arriving from China are thrown away because they were not adequately protected. So, you need to think about how to protect shipments … [Read more...]
4 options for managing shipping and Customs issues with China
When new buyers ask me how to manage shipping and Customs issues, I usually tell them to find a freight forwarder in their country. But there are actually 4 options: 1. Do it all internally, for full control I have only seen big groups … [Read more...]
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