Conference Ship	A ship operated by a signatory to a shipping conference agreement.
Confirmed Letter of Credit	A letter of credit, issued by a foreign bank, the validity of which has been confirmed by a U.S. bank. An exporter whose payment terms are a confirmed letter of credit is assured of payment by the U.S. bank even if the foreign buyer or the foreign bank defaults. See Letter of Credit.
Confirmed Irrevocable Letter of Credit	A letter to which has been added the responsibility of a bank other than the issuing bank.
Confirming	Confirming is a financial service in which an independent company confirms an export order in the seller's country and makes payment for the goods in the currency of that country. Among the items eligible for confirmation (and thereby eligible for credit terms) are the goods themselves, inland, air, and ocean transportation cost, forwarding fees, custom brokerage fees, and duties .For the exporter, confirming means that the entire export transaction from plant to end-user can be fully coordinated and paid for over time. Confirming is common in Europe, however, it is still in its infancy in the United States.
Confirming Bank	A bank in the exporter's country that stands behind payment of a letter of credit when documents are presented in a timely manner and without discrepancies. Usually the advising bank.
Confirming Order	A purchase order placed verbally or otherwise for goods or services prior to the formal issuance of a purchase document against authorized encumbered funds.
Consignee	The person, fir m or representative to whom a seller or shipper sends merchandise and who, upon presentation of the necessary documents, is recognized as owner of the merchandise for the purpose of the declaration and payment of customs duties This term also is used as applying to one to whom goods are shipped, usually the shipper's risk, when an outright sale has not been made.
Consignment	Delivery of merchandise from an exporter (the consignor) to an agent (the consignee) under agreement that the agent sell the merchandise for the account of the exporter. The consignor retains title to the goods until the consignee has sold them. The consignee sells the goods for commission and remits the net proceeds to the consignor.
Consolidation	An air freight forwarder's system of combining many small shipments into one large shipment on a scheduled aircraft. (Slang - "Consol")
Consolidator	A transport contractor, carrier, or forwarder who undertakes the transportation of small shipments (see LCL) in groupage. The consolidator assembles such LCL shipments in a container that will be stripped by his receiving agent in the destination area.
Consortia	Number of shipping companies who have combined their vessel facilities and capital resources in order to offer a shipping service for the carriage of containers.
Constant Dollars	Values adjusted to a base price level, calculated by dividing current dollars by a price deflator. Use of constant dollars eliminates the effects of price inflation and permits the comparison of output volumes over time. Also known as "real" dollars.
Constructed Value	A means of determining fair or foreign market value when sales of such or similar merchandise do not exist or, for various reasons, cannot be used for comparison purposes. The "constructed value" consists of the cost of materials and fabrication or other processing employed in producing the merchandise, general expenses of not less than 10 percent of material and fabrication costs, and profit of not less than 8 percent of the sum of the production costs and general expenses. To this amount is added the cost of packing for exportation to the United States.
Consul	A government official residing in a foreign country who is charged with the representation of the interests of his country and its nationals.
Consular Declaration	A formal statement, made to the consul of a foreign country, describing goods to be shipped.
Consular Documents	Bills of lading, certificates of origin or special invoice forms that are officially signed by the consul of the country of destination.
Consular Invoice	A document, required by some foreign countries, describing a shipment of goods and showing information such as the consignor, consignee, and value of the shipment. Certified by a consular official of the foreign country, it is used by the country's customs officials to verify the value, quantity, and nature of the shipment.
Consularization	Approval of export documents by a foreign consulate or other entity in the United States.
Consumer Price Index (CPI)	A measurement of the relative price levels of various goods and services purchased by consumers.
Consumption Entry	A type of customs entry admitting goods into the commerce of the United States. May be formal or informal.
Container	A uniform, sealed, reusable metal "box" in which merchandise is shipped by vessel, truck, or rail. Standard lengths include 10, 20, 30, and 40 feet (40 foot lengths are generally able to hold about 40,000 pounds). Containers of 45 and 48 feet are also used, as well as containers for shipment by air.
Container Freight Station (CFS)	Also called a container base or consolidation depot is a depot where parcels of cargo are grouped and packed into containers.
Container Load (CL)	See FCL. A shipment sufficient in size to 'fill' a container either by cubic measurement or weight, depending upon governing tariff to meet the provided minimums.
Container Part Load	See LCL. Consignment that does not occupy the full capacity of a container nor equals the maximum payload and will, therefore, allow the inclusion of another or other part-loads.
Container Pooling	System whereby ship-owners, manufacturers or operators create a container pool for common use and maximum utilization.
Container Ship	Vessel specially fitted out for carrying containers. The hold consists of wells into which the containers can be lowered and stacked in up to eight layers. Containers may be stowed on deck up to four high on top of any one hatch.
Container Tanks	Specially constructed cylindrical container for the carriage of bulk liquids, powders or gases, being supported within a frame 8ft x 8ft lattice construction and in lengths 20, 30 and 40ft with corner castings and normally fitted with a bottom pick-up device.
Container Terminal (CT)	An area where large-scale container handling and parking facilities are available. Used for storage and transfer of containers between at least two different transport media (road, sea, rail, barge, air).
Containerization	Shipping systems based on large cargo-carrying containers ranging up to 48 feet long that can be easily interchanged between trucks, trains and ships without rehandling the contents.
Constructive Total Loss	A right of a marine assured to claim a total loss on the policy because either: 1) the property has been lost and recovery is unlikely; 2) an actual total loss appears to be unavoidable; 3) to prevent an actual total loss it would be necessary to incur an expenditure which would exceed the saved value of the property. To establish a claim for constructive total loss the assured must abandon what remains of the property to underwriters and give notice of his intention so to do.
Continuation Clause	A clause providing for the continuation of a hull policy beyond the natural expiry date.
Contract	A written agreement between two or more authorized representatives to perform or not to perform a specific act or acts.
Contracting Parties	Contracting parties are the signatory countries to the GATT. These countries have accepted the specified obligations and privileges of the GATT agreement.
Contraband	During the time of war, materials carried aboard a vessel that could aid a belligerent in the process of the war, such as arms, weapons or munitions.
Contributory Value	The value of property saved by a general salvage or salvage act on which the contribution by each interest to the loss is calculated.
Convertible Currency	Any currency other than Sterling, U.S. dollars or Canadian dollars. The currency that can be bought and sold for other currencies at will.
Cooperative Contracts	Any agreement to engage in joint economic activities, such as a contract for an enterprise owned and operated by one or all of the parties who use its facilities or services. Simple oral and written contracts may be used by companies to begin a cooperative working relationship in an international strategic alliance. Contract terms, conditions and covenants may be brief and should encourage close cooperation between the companies involved for a reasonable time period, to enable their personnel to learn more about each other's capabilities and goals before they consider moving into an even closer more complicated and formal alliance.
Co-production	Co-production is a U.S. government program implemented either by a government-to-government arrangement or through specific licensing arrangements by designated commercial firms. These programs enable foreign entities to acquire the know-how to manufacture or assemble, repair, maintain, and operate all or part of a specific defense item or weapon, communication, or support system.
Core List	National security controls are based largely on CoCom's international industrial list (known generally as the "core list"), which replaced the old industrial list effective September 1991. The core list includes items in ten categories: (1) materials, (2) materials processing, (3) electronics, (4) computers, (5) telecommunications and cryptography, (6) sensors, (7) avionics and navigation, (8) marine technology, (9) propulsion systems and transportation equipment, and (10) miscellaneous.
Correspondent	A bank, Customs Broker, freight forwarded, etc., working with others in another city or country to expedite transactions.
Correspondent Bank	A bank that, in its own country, handles the business of a foreign bank.
Costs of Manufacture	In the context of dumping investigations, the costs of manufacture, COM, is equal to the sum of the materials, labor and both direct and indirect factory overhead expenses required to produce the merchandise under investigation.
Cost of Production	A term used to refer to the sum of the cost of materials, fabrication and/or other processing employed in producing the merchandise sold in a home market or to a third country together with appropriate allocations of general administrative and selling expenses. COP is based on the producer's actual experience and does not include any mandatory minimum general expense or profit as in "constructed value."
Cost and Freight	Cost and Freight (CFR) to a named overseas port of import. Under this term, the seller quotes a price for the goods that includes the cost of transportation to the named point of debarkation. The cost of insurance is left to the buyer's account. (Typically used for ocean shipments only. CPT, or carriage paid to, is a term used for shipment by modes other than water.) Also, a method of import valuation that includes insurance and freight charges with the merchandise values.
Cost, Insurance and Freight	Cost, insurance, and freight (CIF) to a named overseas port of import. Under this term, the seller quotes a price for the goods (including insurance), all transportation, and miscellaneous charges to the point of debarkation for the vessel. (Typically used for ocean shipments only. CIP, or carriage and insurance paid to, is a term used for shipment by modes other than water.)
Counter Guarantee	An undertaking given by a cargo assured to an underwriter agreeing to reimburse the underwriter in the event that the issue of the underwriter's guarantee to pay a general average contribution results in payment in excess of the amount properly due under the policy.
Countertrade	Countertrade is an umbrella term for several sorts of trade in which the seller is required to accept goods, services, or other instruments or trade, in partial or whole payment for its products. Forms include barter, buy-back or compensation, offset requirements, swap, switch, or triangular trade, evidence or bilateral clearing accounts. Some include offsets as a form of countertrade; others make a distinction based on the view that countertrade is a reciprocal exchange of goods and services used to alleviate foreign exchange shortages of importers and that offsets are used as a means for advancing industrial development objectives and may include equity investments. In counterpurchase (one of the most common forms of countertrade), exporters agree to purchase a quantity of goods from a country in exchange for that country's purchase of the exporter's product. The goods being sold by each party are typically unrelated but may be equivalent in value. In a compensation or buy-back deal, exporters of heavy equipment, technology, or even entire facilities agree to purchase a certain percentage of the output of the facility. Barter is a simple swap of one good for another. Switch trading is a complicated form of barter, involving a chain of buyers and sellers in different markets.
Countertrade Ratio	Percent of the value of the original export that is offset by counterdeliveries.
Countervailing Duty	A duty imposed to counter unfairly subsidized products.
Country of Export Destination	Country of destination for exports is the country where the goods are to be consumed, further processed, or manufactured, as known to the shipper at the time of exportation. If the shipper does not know the country of ultimate destination, the shipment is credited to the last country to which the shipper knows that the merchandise will be shipped in the same form as when exported.
Country of Origin	The U.S. Customs Service defines country of origin as the country where an article was wholly grown, manufactured or produced, or, if not wholly grown, cultivated or produced in one country, the last country in which the article underwent a substantial transformation. Duty rates vary according to the country of origin.
Court of International Trade	The CIT has jurisdiction over any civil action against the United States arising from Federal laws governing import transactions. The court hears antidumping, product classification, and countervailing duty matters as well as appeals of unfair trade practice cases from the International Trade Commission. The court was originally established in 1890; principal offices are located in New York City, but the court is empowered to hear and determine cases arising at any port or place within the jurisdiction of the United States. The judges are appointed for life by the President, subject to Senate confirmation.
CPT (carriage paid to) and CIP (carriage and insurance paid to)	Pricing terms indicating that carriage, or carriage and insurance, are paid to the named place of destination. They apply in place of CFR and CIF, respectively, for shipment by modes other than water.
Crawling Peg System	The crawling peg is a procedure in which a currency exchange rate is altered frequently (multiple times a year), generally to adjust for rapid inflation. Between changes, the exchange rate for the currency remains fixed.
Credit Risk Insurance	Insurance designed to cover risks of nonpayment for delivered goods. Compare Marine insurance.
Credit for Countertrade/Offsets	Procedure that reduces the size of the countertrade/offset commitment of a primary supplier on the basis of prescribed or approved commercial initiatives that the primary supplier and/or its designated agents undertake. Decisions related to the approval and the amount of countertrade/offset credit to be granted to the primary supplier rests with special government agencies that are responsible for monitoring the supplier's performance.
CRF (Cost and Freight)	The exporter's price includes the cost of the merchandise and all shipping costs to the named point. Also called C + F and C&F.
C.T. Document	Means Combined Transport Document which is a document evidencing a contract for the performance and or procurement of performance of combined transport of goods.
C.T.O.	Combined Transport Operator. A person (including any Corporation, company or legal entity) issuing a combined Transport document.
Cube Out	When the volumetric capacity of the container has been reached in advance of the permitted weight limit.
Currency Adjustment Factor (CAF)	A charge levied by the 'Ocean Carrier' over and above the ocean freight rate to cater for fluctuations over a period of in actual currency exchange rates as compared to those exchange rates set by the conferences as applying to various sailings.
Current Dollars	The actual dollar amount paid in sales transactions
Customary Deductions	New for old deductions made by an average adjuster from the cost of repairs for general average damage to a ship over 15 years old.
Customs	The authorities designated to collect duties levied by a country on imports and exports. The term also applies to the procedures involved in such collection.
Customs Broker	An individual or a firm licensed by the government to undertake customs clearance and other services for the importing public.
Customs Electronic Bulletin Board	The CEEB provides information on rulings, quotas, currency conversion rates, customs valuation provisions, directives, and other customs news. The CEBB is available without charge, 7 days each week at 202-376-7100 (9600 baud) with PC communication switches set to no parity, 8 bit words and 1 stop bit. Voice information may be obtained by calling 202-376-7039.
Customs Import Value	This is the U.S. Customs Service appraisal value of merchandise. Methodologically, the Customs value is similar to f.a.s. (free alongside ship) value since it is based on the value of the product in the foreign country of origin, and excludes charges incurred in bringing the merchandise to the United States (import duties, ocean freight, insurance, and so forth); but it differs in that the U.S. Customs Service, not the importer or exporter, has the final authority to determine the value of the good.
Customs Invoice	This helps clear goods through customs points in an importing country by verifying the value of goods.
Customshouse Broker	The U.S. Customs Service defines a CHB, or Customs Broker, as any person who is licensed in accordance with Part III of Title 19 of the Code of Federal Regulations (Customs regulations) to transact Customs business on behalf of others. Customs business is limited to those activities involving transactions with Customs concerning the entry and admissibility of merchandise; its classification and valuation; the payment of duties, taxes, or other charges assessed or collected by Customs upon merchandise by reason of its importation, or the refund, rebate, or drawback thereof. (See 19 CFR 111.1(b) and (c).)
CWO	Cash With Order
CY (Container Yard)	Where ocean containers are received, stored, and made available for delivery.

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