Intro Dear friends, one of the recurring debates in Incoterms is whether FOB, CFR and CIF should ever be used for containerized shipments. The theory says “no,” but in practice, traders and banks keep using them every day without issue. Let’s look at why the theory clashes with practice, and what happens with FCL and LCL cargoes. _________ Question One …

Intro Dear friends, sometimes in trade finance we face the “extra cargo” problem: the ship takes a little more than expected, the invoice comes out higher than the LC value, and the documents are presented. The question is—can the LC still be amended at this stage? Let’s unpack this based on UCP 600 and ICC practice. _______ Question Sir, What …

Intro: Bills of lading often carry subtle but important differences in how title to goods is transferred. Among the most debated are the blank endorsed order bill of lading and the bearer bill of lading. At first glance they may look interchangeable — both can be passed along by simple delivery — but the way they originate and the way …

Intro: In trade finance, mistakes by a transferring bank can create tricky situations for the second beneficiary. A common issue arises when an insurance requirement under a transferred LC is incorrectly stated, potentially putting payment at risk. Let’s look at a practical example and clarify who is responsible. ___________ QUESTION Dear Mr. Old Man, Consider the following scenario: The agreed …

Intro: In trade finance, determining the exact shipment date can be trickier than it seems—especially when an air waybill shows different dates in various fields. A common question is whether a “flight date” noted in the AWB can be treated as the actual date of shipment under UCP 600 and ISBP 821. Let’s explore a real-life example. QUESTION Dear Mr. …

Intro Letters of credit can sometimes read like riddles—especially when issuing banks mix up transport fields. A common source of confusion is whether an LC is asking for a straightforward port-to-port shipment or a multimodal one. The distinction matters because the rules (and risks of discrepancies) change depending on which UCP article applies. In this Q&A, Dom shares an LC …

In trade finance, timing is everything—especially when an LC requires shipments by instalments. But what happens if one instalment is shipped late and the bank decides to pay anyway? Does that wipe out the next instalments under Article 32 of UCP 600? Let’s look at a real scenario. ______ QUESTION Dear Mr. Old Man, We issued an LC that stipulates …

Sometimes in trade finance, documents try to be “too smart.” A CPBL signature is one of those tricky places: a small change of words can decide if documents are compliant or discrepant. Let’s look at a real case from Ms. Woo. QUESTION Dear Mr. Old Man, Good day. Customer has presented a Charter Party Bill of Lading (CPBL). The LC …

In trade finance, banks are sometimes tempted to play detective when they see something that doesn’t look “geographically correct.” But under UCP 600, their role is not to check maps or shipping routes—it’s to examine documents on their face. A recent question about whether Toronto can be treated as a “port of discharge” illustrates this point well. QUESTION Dear Mr. …

Intro: In documentary credit practice, shipment dates play a critical role in determining whether a presentation is timely. Questions often arise when multiple charter party bills of lading are involved, especially when they carry different shipment dates under a single presentation. Rohini recently wrote in with a scenario on partial shipments and differing dates of shipment. Let’s look at the …