| 20' |
Standard Twenty Foot long
shipping container |
| 40' |
Standard Forty Foot long
shipping container |
| Arrival
Notice |
A notification by carrier of
ship's arrival to the consignee, the "Notify
Party," and - when applicable - the "Also Notify
Party." These parties in interest are listed in
blocks 3, 4 and 10, respectively, of the Bill of
Lading. |
 |
| B/L |
Bill of Lading. A document that
establishes the terms of a contract between a
shipper and a transportation company. It serves as
a document of title, a contract of carriage and a
receipt for goods. |
| BAF |
Bunker Adjustment Factor -
charged by shipping companies to alleviate
fluctuating Bunkering costs ( Ship's fuel oil
). |
| Bonded
Warehouse |
A warehouse authorized by
Customs authorities for storage of goods on which
payment of duties is deferred until the goods are
removed. |
| Booking Reference
Number |
Reservation number used to
secure equipment and act as a control number prior
to completion of a B/L. |
| Break Bulk |
Loose, non-containerized
cargo. |
| Bulk Cargo |
Not in packages or containers;
shipped loose in the hold of a ship without mark
and count." Grain, coal and sulfur are usually
bulk freight. |
|
| C&F |
Obsolete term of sale meaning
"cargo and freight" where Seller pays for cost of
goods and freight charges up to destination port.
Replaced with the term CFR in July 1990 by the
International Chamber of Commerce. |
| C.I. |
Abbreviation for "Cost and
Insurance." A price that includes the cost of the
goods, the marine insurance and all transportation
charges except the ocean freight to the named
point of destination. |
| CIF |
Cost, Insurance and Freight (
named port ) - Seller is responsible for all costs
as in C&F plus Marine Insurance of the cargo.
Same as C&F or CFR except seller also provides
insurance to named destination. |
| CIF&C |
Price includes commission as
well as CIF. |
| CIF&E |
Abbreviation for "Cost,
Insurance, Freight And Exchange." |
| CIFCI |
Abbreviation for "Cost,
Insurance, Freight, Collection And
Interest." |
| CIFI&E |
Cost, Insurance, Freight,
Interest and Exchange. |
| CAF |
Currency Adjustment Factor -
charged by shipping companies to alleviate
exchange rate deficiencies. |
| CBM / M3 |
Cubic Metre |
| CFS |
Container Freight Station -
usually applies to LCL cargo where cargo is packed
and then despatched overseas and then has to be
unpacked at destination before delivery to
consignee. Some FCL traffic is also handled this
way. e.g. Term would be shown as CFS Melbourne to
CFS Singapore. |
| COC |
Carrier's own container. When
shipper uses containers supplied by the
carrier. |
| CU FT |
Cubic Feet - 33.315 cubic feet
= 1 cubic metre |
| CY |
Container Yard - usually shown
as CY / CY or CY Melbourne / CY Singapore and
applies to FCL's moving through the system. |
| Cartage |
Refers to intercity haulage by
trucks |
| Certificate of
Origin |
A certified document showing
the origin of goods; used in international
commerce. |
| Commercial
Invoice |
A complete record of the
transaction between exporter and importer with
regard to the goods sold. Also reports the content
of the shipment and serves as the basis for all
other documents in connection with the
shipment. |
| Consignee |
A person or company to whom
commodities are shipped. |
| Consignee
Marks |
A symbol or words placed on
packages for identification purposes; generally a
triangle, square, circle, etc. with letters and/or
numbers and port of discharge. |
| Consolidator |
A company that consolidates LCL
cargo into full container loads. The consolidator
takes advantage of lower FCL rates, and savings
are passed on to shippers. |
| Container |
A truck trailer body that can
be detached from the chassis for loading into a
vessel, a rail car or stacked in a container
depot. Containers may be ventilated, insulated,
refrigerated, flat rack, vehicle rack, open top,
bulk liquid or equipped with interior devices. A
container may be 20 feet, 40 feet, 45 feet, 48
feet or 53 feet in length, 8'0" or 8'6" in width,
and 8'6" or 9'6" in height. |
|
| DG |
Dangerous Cargo. Also known as
Hazardous Cargo. |
| DHC |
Depot Handling Charge. A fee
charged by the container yard for
collection/delivery of containers into and out of
the depot. |
| D.O. |
Delivery Order - a cargo
release document given in exchange for an original
Bill of Lading. Issued by Shipping companies and
Freight Forwarders to enable Consignees to collect
cargo/containers ex wharf or depot. |
| Demurrage |
A penalty charge against
shippers or consignees for delaying the carrier's
equipment beyond the allowed free time. Currently
carriers in Singapore allow 2 days free demurrage
after which cargo will begin to incur
storage. |
| Density |
The weight of cargo per cubic
foot. |
| Depot,
Container |
Container freight station or a
designated area where empty containers can be
picked up or dropped off. |
| Detention |
A penalty charge against
shippers or consignees for delaying carrier's
equipment beyond allowed time. Demurrage applies
to cargo; detention applies to equipment. |
| Door to
Door |
Through transportation of a
container and its contents from consignor to
consignee. Also known as House to House. Not
necessarily a through rate. |
|
| ETA |
Estimated Time of Arrival. Used
to indicate when vessel is due to arrive at
port. |
| Ex Works |
Buyer bears all costs of
transport from Sellers premises to Buyers
premises. |
| Export
Permit |
Requirement by TDB (Trade
Development Board of Singapore) for all exports in
order to record the number of exports out of the
country. |
|
| FAF |
Fuel adjustment factor. |
| FAK |
Freight All Kinds - mixed
cargoes packed in the one container. Mostly used
by Freight Forwarders consolidating a number of
LCL shipments to form FCL. |
| FCL |
Full Container Load |
| FEU |
Forty Foot Equivalent Unit i.e.
1x 40' Container |
| FIO |
Free In and Out. Cost of
loading and unloading a vessel is borne by the
charterer/shipper. |
| F.O.B |
Seller is responsible for all
costs up to Free On Board ship at a named Port.
e.g. FOB Singapore. Buyer is responsible from
"Ship's rail". |
| Feeder
Service |
Cargo to/from regional ports
are transferred to/from a central hub port for a
long-haul ocean voyage. |
| Feeder
Vessel |
A short-sea vessel which
transfers cargo between a central "hub" port and
smaller "spoke" ports. |
| Free Trade
Zone |
A port designated by the
government of a country for duty-free entry of any
non-prohibited goods. Merchandise may be stored,
displayed, used for manufacturing, etc., within
the zone and re-exported without duties. |
| Freight
Pre-Paid |
Freight charges paid by the
shipper prior to the release of the bills of
lading by the carrier. |
|
| GST |
Goods and Services Tax - A tax
imposed by the government. In Singapore it is
currently pegged at 3% of CIF value on all general
goods imported into Singapore. Varying tariffs
apply for dutiable items such as alcohol and
tobacco. |
| GRI |
Abbreviation for "General Rate
Increase." Used to describe an across-the-board
tariff rate increase implemented by conference
members and applied to base rates. |
| Gross
Weight |
Entire weight of goods,
packaging and freight car or container, ready for
shipment. |
|
| HBL |
House Bill of Lading (Bill of
Lading issued by a Freight Forwarder) |
| HS Codes |
Harmonized Codes. An
international goods classification system for
describing cargo in international trade under a
single commodity-coding scheme. |
| Heavy Lift
Surcharge |
A charge made for lifting
articles too heavy to be lifted by a ship's normal
tackle. |
|
| IMCO |
International Maritime
Consultative Organization. A forum in which most
major maritime nations participate and through
which recommendations for the carriage of
dangerous goods, bulk commodities, and maritime
regulations become internationally
acceptable. |
| Import
Permit |
Documentation required by
Customs in order to clear goods from the Free
Trade Zone. The import permit will also indicate
the amount of GST to be paid. |
| Inland
Haulage |
Transportation that hauls
export or import traffic between ports and inland
points. |
|
| KG |
Kilogram - 1000 = 1 Tonne |
|
| LBS / lbs |
Pounds - 2.204 lbs =
1kilogram |
| LCL |
Less than Container Load. |
| Letter of
Credit |
Commercial instrument for
organising payments - some forms offer security
and minimise risk. Available through the
Banks. |
| LO / LO |
Lift On / Lift Off - charges
levied by Terminal operators |
| Loose |
Cargo sent without
packing |
|
| Marks/Markings |
Letters, numbers, and other
symbols placed on cargo packages to facilitate
identification. |
| Negotiable
B/L |
The B/L is a title document to
the goods, issued "to the order of" a party,
usually the shipper, whose endorsement is required
to effect is negotiation. Thus, a shipper's order
(negotiable) B/L can be bought, sold, or traded
while goods are in transit and is commonly used
for letter-of-credit transactions. The buyer must
submit the original B/L to the carrier in order to
take possession of the goods. |
| Net Weight |
Weight of the goods alone
without any immediate wrappings, e.g., the weight
of the contents of a tin can without the weight of
the can. |
| Non-Negotiable
B/L |
Indicates the shipper will
deliver the goods to the consignee. It does not
convey title (non-negotiable). Most often used
when the goods have been pre-paid. |
| NVOCC |
A cargo consolidator in ocean
trades who buy space from a carrier and sub-sell
it to smaller shippers. The NVOCC issues bills of
lading, publishes tariffs and otherwise conducts
itself as an ocean common carrier, except that it
will not provide the actual ocean or intermodal
service. |
|
| OBL |
Ocean Bill of Lading. A
contract for transportation between a shipper and
a carrier. It also evidences receipt of the cargo
by the carrier. A bill of lading shows ownership
of the cargo and, if made negotiable, can be
bought, sold or traded while the goods are
in-transit. |
| Open Top
Container |
A container fitted with a solid
removable roof, or with a tarpaulin roof so the
container can be loaded or unloaded from the
top. |
| Over Height or
Long Length Cargo |
Cargo more than 243.84 cm (8
feet) high which thus cannot fit into a standard
container. |
|
| Packing
List |
Itemized list of commodities
with marks/numbers but no cost values
indicated. |
| Pallet |
A platform with or without
sides, on which a number of packages or pieces may
be loaded to facilitate handling by a lift
truck. |
| Port of Discharge
(POD) |
Port at which cargo will be
discharged from the vessel |
| Port of Loading
(POL) |
Port at which cargo is loaded
onto vessel |
| Proof of
Delivery |
- Port of Discharge.
- Port
of Destination.
- Proof of Delivery. A document
required from the carrier or driver for proper
payment. |
|
| Revenue
Tonne |
A ton on which the shipment is
freighted. If cargo is rated as weight or measure
(W/M), whichever produces the highest revenue will
be considered the revenue ton. Weights are based
on metric tons and measures are based on cubic
meters. RT=1 MT or 1 CBM. |
| RO/RO |
A shortening of the term, "Roll
On/Roll Off." A method of ocean cargo service
using a vessel with ramps which allows wheeled
vehicles to be loaded and discharged without
cranes. |
|
| SOC |
Shipper's own container |
| STC |
Said to contain. Used when
describing contents of packages. |
| Sea Waybill |
Document indicating the goods
were loaded onboard when a B/L is not needed.
Typically used when a company is shipping goods to
itself. |
| Ships (Types
of) |
Bulk Carriers: All
vessels designed to carry bulk cargo such as
grain, fertilizers, ore, and oil.
Combination Passenger and Cargo Ships:
Ships with a capacity for 13 or more passengers.
Freighters: Breakbulk vessels both
refrigerated and unrefrigerated, containerships,
partial containerships, roll-on/roll-off vessels,
and barge carriers.
Barge Carriers: Ships designed to carry
barges; some are fitted to act as full
containerships and can carry a varying number of
barges and containers at the same time. At present
this class includes two types of vessels LASH and
Sea-Bee.
General Cargo Carriers: Breakbulk
freighters, car carriers, cattle carriers, pallet
carriers and timber carriers.
Full Containerships: Ships equipped with
permanent container cells, with little or no space
for other types of cargo.
Partial Containerships: Multipurpose
containerships where one or more but not all
compartments are fitted with permanent container
cells. Remaining compartments are used for other
types of cargo.
Roll-on/Roll-off vessels: Ships
specially designed to carry wheeled containers or
trailers using interior ramps.
Tankers: Ships fitted with tanks to
carry liquid cargo such as: crude petroleum and
petroleum products; chemicals, Liquefied
gasses(LNG and LPG), wine, molasses, and similar
product tankers.
|
| Shipper |
The person or company who is
usually the supplier or owner of commodities
shipped. Also called Consignor. |
| Shipper's
Instructions |
Shipper's communication to
forwarder or carrier advising consignee, notifiy
party and any other specific details or clauses to
be printed on the B/L, including directions for
cargo pickup and delivery. |
| Shipping Order or
Shipping Note |
Shipper's instructions to
carrier for forwarding goods. |
| Shrink Wrap |
Polyethylene or similar
substance heat-treated and shrunk into an envelope
around several units, thereby securing them as a
single pack for presentation or to secure units on
a pallet. |
| Stuffing |
Putting cargo into a
container. |
|
| TEU |
Twenty Foot Equivalent Unit
i.e. 1x 20' Container |
| THC |
Terminal Handling Charge -
levied by shipping companies and reflects the
local port costs of stevedoring. |
| Terms of
Sale |
The point at which sellers have
fulfilled their obligations so the goods in a
legal sense could be said to have been delivered
to the buyer. They are shorthand expressions that
set out the rights and obligations of each party
when it comes to transporting the goods.
Following, are the thirteen terms of sale in
international trade as Terms of Sale reflected in
the recent amendment to the International chamber
of Commerce Terms of Trade (INCOTERMS), effective
July 1990:
EXW (Ex Works): A Term of Sale which
means that the seller fulfills the obligation to
deliver when he or she has made the goods
available at his/her premises (i.e., works,
factory, warehouse, etc.) to the buyer. In
particular, the seller is not responsible for
loading the goods in the vehicle provided by the
buyer or for clearing the goods for export, unless
otherwise agreed. The buyer bears all costs and
risks involved in taking the goods from the
seller's premises to the desired destination. This
term thus represents the minimum obligation for
the seller.
FCA (Free Carrier): A Term of Sale which
means the seller fulfills their obligation when he
or she has handed over the goods, cleared for
export, into the charge of the carrier named by
the buyer at the named place or point. If no
precise point is indicated by the buyer, the
seller may choose, within the place or range
stipulated, where the carrier should take the
goods into their charge.
FAS (Free Alongside Ship): A Term of
Sale which means the seller fulfills his
obligation to deliver when the goods have been
placed alongside the vessel on the quay or in
lighters at the named port of shipment. This means
that the buyer has to bear all costs and risks of
loss of or damage to the goods from that
moment.
FOB (Free On Board): An International
Term of Sale that means the seller fulfills his or
her obligation to deliver when the goods have
passed over the ship's rail at the named port of
shipment. This means that the buyer has to bear
all costs and risks to loss of or damage to the
goods from that point. The FOB term requires the
seller to clear the goods for export.
CFR (Cost and Freight): A Term of Sale
where the seller pays the costs and freight
necessary to bring the goods to the named port of
destination, Terms of Sale but the risk of loss of
or damage to the goods, as (continued) well as any
additional costs due to events occurring after the
time the goods have been delivered on board the
vessel, is transferred from the seller to the
buyer when the goods pass the ship's rail in the
port of shipment. The CFR term requires the seller
to clear the goods for export.
CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight): A
Term of Sale where the seller has the same
obligations as under the CFR but also has to
procure marine insurance against the buyer's risk
of loss or damage to the goods during the
carriage. The seller contracts for insurance and
pays the insurance premium. The CIF term requires
the seller to clear the goods for export.
CPT (Carriage Paid To): A Term of Sale
which means the seller pays the freight for the
carriage of the goods to the named destination.
The risk of loss of or damage to the goods, as
well as any additional costs due to events
occurring after the time the goods have been
delivered to the carrier, is transferred from the
seller to the buyer when the goods have been
delivered into the custody of the carrier. If
subsequent carriers are used for the carriage to
the agreed upon destination, the risk passes when
the goods have been delivered to the first
carrier. The CPT term requires the seller to clear
the goods for export.
CIP (Carriage and Insurance Paid To): A
Term of Sale which means the seller has the same
obligations as under CPT, but with the addition
that the seller has to procure cargo insurance
against the buyer's risk of loss of or damage to
the goods during the carriage. The seller
contracts for insurance and pays the insurance
premium. The buyer should note that under the CIP
term the seller is required to obtain insurance
only on minimum coverage. The CIP term requires
the seller to clear the goods for export.
DAF (Delivered At Frontier): A Term of
Sale which means the sellers fulfill their
obligation to deliver when the goods have been
made available, cleared for export, at the named
point and placed at the frontier, but before the
customs Terms of Sale border of the adjoining
country.
DDU (Delivered Duty Unpaid): A Term of
Sale where the seller fulfills his obligation to
deliver when the goods have been made available at
the named place in the country of importation. The
seller has to bear the costs and risks involved in
bringing the goods thereto (excluding duties,
taxes and other official charges payable upon
importation) as well as the costs and risks of
carrying out customs formalities. The buyer has to
pay any additional costs and to bear any risks
caused by failure to clear the goods for in time.
DDP (Delivered Duty paid): "Delivered
Duty Paid" means that the seller fulfills his
obligation to deliver when the goods have been
made available at the named place in the country
of importation. The seller has to bear the risks
and costs, including duties, taxes and other
charges of delivering the goods thereto, clear for
importation. While the EXW term represents the
minimum obligation for the seller, DDP represents
the maximum.
DES (Delivered Ex Ship): A Term of Sale
where the seller fulfills his/her obligation to
deliver when the goods have been made available to
the buyer on board the ship, uncleared for import
at the named port of destination. The seller has
to bear all the costs and risks involved in
bringing the goods to the named port destination.
DEQ (Delivered Ex Quay, [Duty Paid]): A
Term of Sale which means the DDU term has been
fulfilled when the goods have been available to
the buyer on the quay (wharf) at the named port of
destination, cleared for importation. The seller
has to bear all risks and costs including duties,
taxes and other charges of delivering the goods
thereto.
|
| Through
Rate |
The total rate from the point
of origin to final destination |
| Transship |
To transfer goods from one
transportation line to another, or from one ship
to another. |
|
| Unclaimed
Freight |
Freight that has not been
called for or picked up by the consignee or
owner. |
|
| War Risk |
Insurance coverage for loss of
goods resulting from any act of war. |
| Warehouse |
A place for the reception,
delivery, consolidation, distribution, and storage
of goods/cargo. |
| Weights &
Measurements |
Measurement ton 40 cubic ft or
one cubic meter.
Net ton, or short ton 2,000
lbs.
Gross ton/long ton 2,240 lbs.
Metric
ton/kilo ton 2,204.6 lbs.
Cubic meter 35.314
cubic ft.
|
| Wharfage |
Charge assessed by a pier or
dock owner against freight handled over the pier
or dock or against a steamship company using the
pier or dock. |
| W.M. (W/M) |
Abbreviation for "Weight or
Measurement;" the basis for assessing freight
charges. Also known as "worm." The rate charged
under W/M will be whichever produces the highest
revenue between the weight of the shipment and the
measure of the shipment. |
|
