Day / June 23, 2011

by Mike Poverello

WCO News – Latest edition

WCO-News-June-2011The June 2011 edition of the WCO News is a bumper 56 pages. You will find several interesting articles relating to the latest developments and initiatives on trade facilitation. A particular article features East Africa’s efforts at facilitation at its land borders. Read also about –

  • Korea’s Client-oriented Logistics Information System which automatically measures the time taken for processing imported cargo at each stage of clearance from arrival at port to release (arrival at port > bonded warehouse > import declaration > permission > release), to diagnose and eliminate bottlenecks in logistics.
  • TradeFIRST, Singapore Customs’ latest initiative to improve trade facilitation through better partnerships with business. TradeFIRST is a single trade facilitation window that integrates the concepts of facilitation, compliance and risk management, and promises to make trade easier, fairer and more secure.
  • Latin America leads the way with AEO implementation, and
  • The concept of multi-layered security.

The Magazine is available in traditional PDF format or as an ebook. www.wcoomd.org

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by Mike Poverello

Shipping lines get tough over new EU cargo information rules

Seems like ‘cargo reporting’ is becoming as infectious as a virus! The shipping industry has warned its customers that failure to comply with new EU regulations will mean fines and their cargo will not be loaded. Following similar measures introduced by the US in 2002, it seems that not only is there a possibility of “fines” and “no loading of cargo”, but that shipping lines even get to cash in on a revenue opportunity; some to the extent of US$25 per bill of lading. It absolutely amazes me that this is allowed to happen – talk about non-tariff barriers!  While SARS, for example, can give thousands of ZA Rands worth of intellectual property (for free) to the trading community – with the hope of making trading easier – why can the bastions of the sea not do likewise? Seems as though the “war on terror” has been interpreted by some as a ‘cash cow’!  Read the full article online: www.bdpinternational.com.