International Trade
Vocabulary
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Duties
Quotas
Tariffs
Trade Barriers
Dumping
Anti-Dumping
Countervailing Duties
Most Favored Nation
Trade Dress Law
INCOTERMS
Online Dictionary of Trade Terms
http://www.citd.org/trade_info/sections.cfm?sid=5
Research Guides
http://www.asil.org/resource/iel1.htm
http://www.llrx.com/features/trade3.htm
Hypothetical – You Represent a U.S. Company Who Wants
to Export Wooden Bedroom Furniture to Germany
Introductory Guides (US Perspective)
http://www.unzco.com/basicguide/index.html
http://www.sba.gov/oit/info/Guide-To-Exporting/all.html
STAT USA – GLOBUS & NTDB
German Furniture Market
Industry Sector Analysis Reports by Country > Germany > Furniture
http://www.stat-usa.gov/mrd.nsf/vwISA_Country/B49760A5437E6D5B85256F83002C48DB?OpenDocument&sessID=60AB02C10315341
Export.gov
Trade Data > 10 digit > 940350
http://www.ita.doc.gov/td/industry/otea/index.html
International Addresses and Salutations
http://www.bspage.com/address.html
Business Culture Guides
http://www.cyborlink.com/besite/germany.htm
http://www.executiveplanet.com/business-etiquette/Germany.html
Doing Business in _______
http://www.hg.org/guides.html
Country Commercial Guides
http://www.buyusainfo.net/adsearch.cfm?search_type=int&loadnav=no
Significant U.S.Trade Laws
• Tariff Act of 1930 (Smoot-Hawley Tariff
Act)
Material on AD/CVD
• Federal Procedure:
Lawyer’s Edition –
• OCU Reference
• Westlaw (FEDPROC)
37:644
http://www.usitc.gov/
An anti-dumping countervailing duty handbook, guidelines for hearings,
timetables for investigations and administrative orders issues in AD/CVD cases is accessible from the
website.
Significant U.S.Trade Laws
• Tariff Act of 1930 (Smoot-Hawley Tariff
Act)
• Trade Act of 1974
• 1979 Acts
• Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness
Act of 1988
• Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset
Act of 2000 (Byrd Amendment )
Important Governmental Organs
• Congress
• Executive
– Department of Commerce
• International Trade Administration
Export.gov
Determining Tariffs and Taxes
http://www.trade.gov/td/tic/
Browse the HTS (Schedule B)
940350 Wooden furniture of a kind
used in the bedroom
Step 2: Determine Country Tariff
Info and Tax Info
Notice that Germany also uses the HTS so furniture is easily found under
chapter 94.
EU Import Duties ? Taxes?
No duties but a 16% VAT
Importing into the US
Importing into the US
Important Governmental Organs
• Congress
• Executive
– Department of Commerce
• International Trade Administration
– Treasury > Customs (freight forwarder)
– International Trade Commission
– United States Trade Representative
US Customs
http://www.customs.ustreas.gov/ - CROSS Database of customs rulings
International Trade Commission
http://www.usitc.gov/
US Trade Representative
http://www.ustr.gov/ Lists trade agreements the US is a party to. Dispute Settlement
section give summary of pending actions. Publishes: Trade Policy Agenda and
Annual Report of the President of the United States.
What if there is a dispute?
• Arbitration
• Administrative Agencies
– Customs http://rulings.customs.gov/
– International Trade Commission
• Federal Procedure 37:644
• Court of International Trade
• Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
Research Strategy – US Trade Law
• ID Relevant Statutes (use annotations)
• ID Relevant Agencies
– Use Agency Website
– Federal Procedure Lawyer’s Edition
• Be aware of US’s International Obligations
– USTR’s Report (http://www.ustr.gov/)
• Case Law (admin agencies & specialized cts.)
• Secondary Sources (Restatement)
• Current Events
Documentary Sales Transaction
Image from International Business Transactions In a Nutshell, pp. 128.
CISG - Contracting States
http://www.cisg.law.pace.edu/cisg/cisgintro.html
Interpreting the CISG – Article 7(1)
• 7(1) In the interpretation of this
convention, regard is to be had to its
international character and to the need to
promote uniformity in its application and
the observance of good faith in
international trade.
Suggested Methodology for
Interpreting the CISG
• Text of the CISG
• Travaux
• Comparative Law to see the meaning of a
term in the Contracting States
• Do not use normal means of interpreting
international treaties
Schlechtreim Treatise pp. 62-65.
Interpreting the CISG – Article 7(2)
Gap Filling
• 7(2) Questions concerning matters
governed by this Convention which are not
expressly settled in it are to be settled in
conformity with the general principles on
which it is based or, in the absence of
such principles, in conformity with the law
applicable by virtue of the rules of private
international law.
7(2) Gap Filling
• General Principles
– As defined by Kritzer (pp. 114-119)
– UNIDROIT’s Uniform Law on the International
Sale of Goods
– UNIDROIT’s Principles of International
Commercial Contracts
7(2) Gap Filling
• Rules of Private International Law?
CISG Research Strategy
• Kritzer, Guide to Practical Application of
the CISG.
• Schlechtriem, Commentary on the UN
Convention
• Travaux
• Cases – Pace and CLOUT Databases
Pace’s CISG Database
http://cisgw3.law.pace.edu/
UNIDROIT
http://www.unidroit.org/english/home.htm
UNICTRAL
http://www.uncitral.org/en-index.htm
INCOTERMS
http://www.iccwbo.org/index_incoterms.asp
2) Bill of Lading
Federal Bill of Lading Act, 49 U.S.C.A. § 80101-80116 (governs transferability)
Harter Act, 46 U.S.C.A. § 190-196 (governs form and content)
Carriage of Goods by Sea Act, 46 U.S.C.A. § 1300-1315 (governs form and content)
3) Letter of Credit
Governed by:
-UCC Article 5
-International Chamber Commerce’s Uniform Customs and Practices for
Documentary Credits (UCP)
Other Shipping Documents
Certificate of Origin
• Commercial Invoice
• Policy of Marine Insurance
• Certificate of Inspection
• Import License
• Certificate of Origin
• OUR FREIGHT BROKER
WILL TAKE CARE OF ALL OF
THIS!
WTO
http://www.wto.org/
NAFTA
http://www.nafta-sec-alena.org/DefaultSite/index_e.aspx
The End
Images of shipping documents
• http://www.unzco.com/basicguide/c10.html
#Documentation
EAR Part 774
Will we need an export license ?
http://www.bxa.doc.gov/licensing/ExportingBasics.htm
General Economic Data
CIA World Factbook
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/