Simplified Trade Finance
LCL shipping means a process where the exporters mutually share the container space when the package size is significantly less than the maximum load a container can carry. It is a win-win situation, both for the shipping company as well as the exporters. The shipping company recovers the cost of the container while sharing the box makes transportation inexpensive for the exporters.
A shipper’s letter of instruction (SLI), also known as the shipper’s export declaration, is an authorization document that is issued by the exporter to its agents or freight forwarders. The SLI document mainly contains details about the shipping terms, allowing the transport company to issue an air waybill or Bill of Lading (BOL) on the exporter’s behalf. It also lays out directions for the carrier on how to handle, store, load and unload the shipment effectively or without any physical damage to the products.
Previously, while loading the smaller shipments, the goods were sorted at the time of onboarding. This process often led to the jumbling of all the goods/products together. However, with the introduction of containerized shipping, goods can be classified and organized before they are onboarded today. The containerized system has transformed how the International Shipping operates by optimizing the process of how shipments are onboarded. Container Freight Stations (CFS) help in consolidating smaller shipments or Less Container Load (LCL) shipments, hence playing a vital role in the containerized shipping process.
The rise of easier overseas shipping has been a huge boost for exporters and importers all over the world. This growth has been fueled largely by ocean freight shipping -- nearly 90% of global trade is driven via sea and ocean transport today. Ocean freight today provides a safe and cost-effective way to transport all kinds of goods. This has resulted in nearly 200 million containers being shipped through ocean freight every year.
DAT is an incoterm published by the ICC, having its first edition in 1936 and the most recent one in January 2020. The recent edition has a new name for DAT, i.e., ‘Delivered at Place Unloaded’, but the responsibilities of the seller and the buyer remain unchanged.