shipping from China Archives - Personalised Freight Solutions

Inconsistent Pricing

Posted by Personalised Freight Solutions Pty Ltdon April 25, 2016April 25, 2016Leave a comment

A reoccurring comment we hear from LCL importers is “Why is it that our charges are so inconsistent?”. On investigation, we find that it all comes back to the agreed incoterms of sale. Generally finding that it is that the importer is buying on CIF terms.

CIF is “Cost Insurance Freight”, the buyer is paying the seller for the cost of the goods, transit insurance and Freight to port of entry at destination country. This for importers seems like the “easiest” option.

However, what this can create is limit control on timing, create additional work for the buyer to stay on top of shipping details to plan for the goods on arrival and local charges being charged according to which ever consolidation handling office the suppliers consolidator uses.

Does that mean you should not buy CIF? No, this is still a good option for many importers. To solve the common issues with control and inconsistent charges, communicate with your supplier and your freight agent. Make your expectation clear and ask that your supplier(s) and your freight agent work together to ensure that your expectations on timing and costs are still being met.

3 easy tips that may assist:

When accepting a CIF quote from the overseas seller, issue them with a Purchase Order that outlines expectation on arrival time into Australia
Provide a copy of the quote, purchase order and specific details of the seller to your freight agent. Ask they communicate with the seller to determine the consolidator details and associated arrival charges when arriving in Australia. Your freight agent can advise the seller what are the acceptable arrival charges so this can be negotiated when the seller is booking with the consolidator at origin.
Establish a landed costing model with your freight agent. A landed cost is establishing what your goods are worth when they arrive at your door in Australia prior to being sold into the market. This will give you a value window of acceptable costs to pay on import rather than specific costs.

The key to limiting inconsistencies is EXPECTATION AND COMUNICATION!

“My goods ship from China, therefore they are Duty Free”

Posted by Personalised Freight Solutions Pty Ltdon April 14, 2016Leave a comment

Many Importers have been enjoying a saving of 5% on their import duties since the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement took affect 20th December, 2015.

For importers, both experienced and new who still think “My goods ship from China, therefore they are Duty Free” please take time to completely understand the implications of the Free Trade Agreement and specifically how the goods you are importing are affected.

It is not correct to make the assumption that because your goods ship from China they are automatically duty free and if your representation who handle your border clearances are declaring them as such with out the correct documentation, it is you as the importer who will be held liable for the 5% duty not paid at the time of importation. 5% of your total imports for the year would certainly add up, in additional to interest and fines.

A good starting point is asking the following questions of your representation:

Are my suppliers providing a certificate of origin for each shipment?
If they are, does the certificate of origin state a HS code for each item in each shipment?
If they are, does the certificate correctly link to all the other commercial documentation for the shipment?

If any of these answers are no, but your duty rate has dropped on your customs declaration. Work with your freight agent and your suppliers to get this right for past and future shipments.

It may be that your items have not dropped to 0% duty at all and will not do so until 2019, in fact if you are importing items that fall under the likes of HS Code 62304300 Boys Shorts, and provide a Certificate of Origin you will end up paying 6% duty!

see http://www.chinaaustraliafta.com.au for further guidance.

China Freight Rates – 2015 vs 2016

Posted by Personalised Freight Solutions Pty Ltdon April 5, 2016April 5, 2016Leave a comment

With the first Quarter of 2016 behind us, it is interesting to check in to see where the freight rates Ex China are sitting.

As you can see from this chart, rates are significantly lower than that of 2015. It was around this time last year that we reported in on rates and how they were trending. What seemed like rates too good to be true in March, April or May 2015 now seem a little high when we you place them in comparison to March or April of this year.

What are the drivers of low freight rates? And why is it a constant up and down situation? It is a simple case of supply and demand. With the low Australian dollar (in March for Example as low as 0.67) and the down turn in mining in Australia, the vessels out of China are carrying less cargo.

To try to make a comparison it is like the circle of life

Today’s media is full of reports on the unrest in our government, the Australian dollar movement, Mining and taxes all these economic drivers will affect where the freight rates sit.

Have you experienced damaged cargo or loss?

Posted by Personalised Freight Solutions Pty Ltdon July 8, 2015July 8, 2015Leave a comment

How frustrating is it to receive packages in the mail or delivered to your door and they look like a dog’s breakfast? Do you go back to the online store? Or direct to the supplier & send an email or give them a call to let them know your dissatisfaction.

Or are you on the receiving end of this email / phone call?? ….. How do you feel about receiving complaints from your clients saying they received the package damaged or only partially delivered?

Unfortunately, somethings are out of our control and some risks unpreventable, however did you know that almost 70% of all cargo losses are preventable?

How do I prevent cargo loss?

By being aware and paying attention to the risks that your cargo can be exposed to during your chosen mode of transport will reduce the loss of cargo.

These risks come in many forms, a few have been listed below, Have you considered any of these?

Handling… Rapid acceleration/deceleration of lifting/lowering to ship. Tilting during loading (fork truck handling). Pushing/dragging. Mishandling due to unsuitable equipment or unskilled labour. Improper weight distribution. Unsuitable lifting points.

Via Road… Acceleration/deceleration (stop and go/sudden braking). Impact against loading dock. Tilting (swaying on curves). Vibration and road shocks.

Via Rail… Acceleration/deceleration. Coupling impact (shifting / jolting) Swaying on curves. Vibrations.

Via Sea… Rolling, pitching, yaw and sway, surging. Wave impact Vibrations

Water damage… Rainwater (including snow and ice) Seawater Condensation (in container or on a delivery drivers truck if no tarp / cover)

Flooding, Theft/ Pilferage… Exposure of cargo/ container during all operations including transfer between points. Hijacking of container (Piracy)

Contamination… Residual materials or odours from previous load. Incompatible cargo. Proximity to hazardous or noxious cargos, cross contamination

Errors, omissions and delays are issues that we have all experienced in our lives. It may have been a missed consignment, late delivery, etc. The process of getting materials through airports and wharves can be a complex process.

So what can be done if the flight departure, or the sailing, is missed?

Firstly look after the integrity of the product, especially if it needs special storage. Subsequently look to make alternate arrangements with the exporter / Shipper, Investigate the problem. Identify the cause – this is not a witch-hunt – and implement appropriate procedures and policies to avoid it happening again.

What about Fraud??

Frauds are the result of illegal and unethical behaviour. Fraud may be perpetrated by a number of parties in the transaction, including:

the supplier (incorrect or substandard goods)
the buyer (obtaining delivery under false pretences)
the carrier (changing the departure date on transport documents)
and border control agencies (seeking ‘facilitation payments”)

Having Personalised Freight Solutions as your preferred international freight forwarder, we consider the types of processes and the issues that may be encountered, we assist in mitigating these risks and look at what we can do to assist you with these risks when they do occur.

Risk mitigation is the anticipation of risk, so how can you mitigate risk if you do not know or understand the process? How can you identify, analyse, evaluate and treat the risk in ignorance?

You must understand the risk you are trying to manage! Let the team at Personalised Freight Solutions help you.

Have you Considered? Packaging

Posted by Personalised Freight Solutions Pty Ltdon June 23, 2015June 23, 2015Leave a comment

Our series on “Have you Considered?” has all been about highlighting topics that we can take for granted, our recent post regarding packaging is one of these topics.

It is taken for granted, more often than not, that if you are buying from an overseas company who facilitate selling their goods to an international market that they know how to package goods or will ensure goods are adequately packed for export.

A question we are often asked is “how can we ensure that goods will be packaged adequately?”, the answer to this question is to check, check and check again. In your initial confirmation of purchase advise of your expectation on packaging, communicate with your freight agent your expectation and have your freight agent express further the expectation on packaging.

To provide further assurance on the standard of packaging, we would suggest to engage in a pre shipment inspection service, Personalised Freight Solutions can provide some direction in this area, please contact us via email / phone / Social Media to be provided further information,

Bec

Half Way

Posted by Personalised Freight Solutions Pty Ltdon May 29, 2015March 16, 2021Leave a comment

It is hard to believe we are rolling into June! A time of year where we reflect if we have achieved what we set out to achieve this year, we start to gather figures and paperwork for the tax man and many people start to tell us how may weeks it is until Christmas!

With receiving our China contract rates for June yesterday, and seeing how incredibly low they were, it prompted me to analyse how the rates have moved in the first half of this year.

Mapping January to June this graph shows a solid start with no movement really between January and February, a drop in March which was due to container volumes being low after Chinese New Year with an increase come April. From April until now, the rates have decreased substantially.

If anyone would like to have insight into any specific port or country, please give us a call or pop us an email.