Whatever next?

It is reported that Cambodian police have arrested a man after six boxes of teddy bears filled with about 80 kg of pseudoephedrine were posted to Australia.   A search of his flat is also said to have revealed 39 extra-large towels, folded neatly and wrapped in plastic which had been soaked in the tranquilizer Ketamine which may also have been intended for Australia.

#export #Cambodia #Australia


www.morley-consulting.co.uk

A tree’s best friend

picture: © David Merritt

A feasibility study has recently concluded that sniffer dogs can be trained to detect illegal timber regardless of whether it is still in its raw state or part of a finished product.

The EU study trained springer spaniels to indicate timber that was in contravention of CITES or local legislation and found that they had a 90% success rate!  The study is now going to be moved to ports and airports to assess the success rate in the field.  More power to their noses!

www.morley-consulting.co.uk

#CITES #timber #import #dog

Blue Yonder

As Chancellor George Osborne said today ‘Britain isn’t exporting enough’.   Why might this be?  Well in my opinion there are many potential exporters in Britain with excellent products but what stops them exporting or failing once they have exported?   

 

In my experience it is not the export regulations and requirements that cause the problems it is the import requirements and customer needs where the issues arise.   What’s the point of sending goods into the wide blue yonder with no idea if they can be imported at the other end and no concern about how much it will cost?  If you attend to both ends of the transaction you will really become a global success!

 

#exporting #import

www.morley-consulting.co.uk

Valentine’s Day Up Close and Personal!

Spare a thought for all those Customs officers in the USA who have had to inspect every stem (yes stem!) of imported flowers for pests before they could be imported into the USA for Valentine’s Day!   Perhaps they should change the saying ‘Can’t see the wood for the trees’ to ‘Can’t see the bouquet for the flowers’!

#Valentine #Customs 

www.morley-consulting.co.uk

Valentine’s Day woes

International trade issues are even getting in the way of love!

Extra high prices and a shortage of red flowers on Valentine’s Day in the EU may well be the result of a dispute between Turkey and Bulgaria over transport permits which has caused both countries to close their borders to each other.   It is reported that Turkish flower produces face ruin as thousands of flowers wait and rot in vehicles at the border or in warehouses.  

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-26114545 for full report.

 

#Valentine #flowers #Turkey #Bulgaria

www.morley-consulting.co.uk

How much???????

2014 appears to be a year of excellent growth for SME exporters, at least within the UK.

This is good news but the lack of export training is clearly apparent as many of these companies want to export their products all over the world right from the start.   I am frequently asked questions about import duty and taxes that might apply at destination. I am then on hand to hear the outraged and incredulous responses when I explain the duty rates (some as high as 70%!) which are an effective barrier to trade with some countries.

Trading via the internet does not change the import requirements it just makes your ‘export reach’ greater than it might have been.

 

#export #training #SME

 

www.morley-consulting.co.uk

 

Buyer Beware!

Oh dear it’s happened again!   News just in from Canada ‘The owner of a British food shop in Canada says he has been ordered to stop importing and selling Marmite, Ovaltine and Irn-Bru because they contain illegal additives.’    Just because a product is considered acceptable for sale in one country does not automatically mean it is acceptable for sale in a different country.   Each country (and in America each State!) has its own rules and ideas about what is OK for its citizens.   Importers breaking these rules whether by ignorance or deliberate fraud will find their goods confiscated and probably destroyed.   Fighting such cases can be a lengthy business with the need for professional help from chemists, food manufacturers, doctors and lawyers.   Better to know the rules and avoid the cost and disappointment.  See full story here http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-25867613

 

#import #Canada #Marmite

 

www.morley-consulting.co.uk

 

Stop Press!

It has just been announced that Fed Ex and DHL have suspended shipments of parcels to private individuals in Russia on account of stricter customs rules.

The ban applies to goods ordered by Russian customers over the internet.  The new rules mean that extra documents are required for the clearance of these shipments including passport details.

Business customers are reportedly not affected.

DHL says the suspension of shipments will come into effect on 27^th January.   It is reported that other firms such as UPS, TNT and DPD are also considering bans.

 

See here for news: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-25878869

#Russia #parcel

www.morley-consulting.co.uk

Spare a thought .....

Spare a thought for those preparing to handle the freight transport of all the gear for the Winter Olympics. Not only have they got hundreds of odd shape parcels of oddly named and unusual items but they have to get them half way up a mountain in Russia in mid Winter!   Whilst many of the competitors will be wishing for as much snow and ice as possible I suspect most of the logistics teams will be hoping for exactly the opposite!

#Olympics #logistics # Russia

www.morley-consulting.co.uk

BRICs are so last year !!

Jim O’Neil who first coined the term BRIC to identify Brazil, Russia, India and China as potential powerhouses of the world economy has done it again.

We now must remember the ‘MINT’ countries - Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria and Turkey - as emerging economic giants.

After dinner mint anyone???

www.Morley-consulting.co.uk

#BRIC   #MINT

Losing weight?

In client discussions today I have once again been reminded that weight in international trade is a matter of great confusion.  It is not just that some people work in grams, some in kilos, some in metric tonnes, some in pounds and some in ounces, although that is bad enough particularly if you are careless about the spelling of tonnes!

For the calculation of freight costs the ‘weight’ may have nothing to do with the actual weight of the consignment but everything to do with the dimensions. This is the infamous ‘volumetric weight’.  It is a mathematical calculation that allows volume to be compared with weight so you can end up with volumetric kilos.  But take care the sums are different depending on mode of transport!  You will be charged according to either the packed weight or the #volumetric weight whichever is the greater.

Remember this when you ask for a freight quote and make sure you give the dimensions as well as the weight to avoid nasty surprises!

www.morley-consulting.co.uk