September 8, 2020 News & Events admin

CPT – Carriage Paid To (Named Place) Incoterms® 2020

Article 6 in our series of Incoterms® 2020 – In each article we will identify the responsibilities of the seller and buyer in the transaction at different points in the shipping journey.

What are Incoterms® used for?

Incoterms® are primarily used for determining how the sale of equipment for delivery across international boundaries will be handled and who will pay for what in the transaction. They will not address the consequences of a breach of contract or exemptions of liability. Incoterms® relate to the terms between the exporter and importer.

Incoterms® cover the following broad points:

Delivery -Incoterms® 2020 specify when seller delivers to buyer
Risk – Incoterms® 2020 specify when risk transfers from seller to buyer. Risk passes from seller to buyer when seller has fulfilled his obligation to deliver the goods
Costs – Responsibility of costs passes from seller to buyer at a point up to which the seller is obliged to pay transport (and insurance) costs

Our fifth Incoterm® is CPT – Carriage Paid To (Named Place)

CPT can be used in any transport mode, and the risk transfers from the seller to the buyer as soon as the goods reach the nominated named place/destination and the carrier takes charge of these.

Under the Incoterms® 2020 rules, the CPT rule requires the seller to deliver the goods to its carrier but does not indicate whether that is either at the seller’s premises loaded onto the collecting vehicle or delivered to another premises not unloaded from the seller’s vehicle. The seller must carry out any export formalities and the buyer carries out any import formalities. It is the seller’s responsibility to contract for carriage and of course the cost of that will be built into the selling price. Like FCA, the risk transfers to the buyer immediately when delivery has been made, This rule works well for land transport within the Europe/Central Asia landmass, because often the truck collecting the goods will be the one transporting the goods to the destination.

Quick overview

What are the seller’s obligations?

Seller provides commercial invoice and other required documents in paper or electronic form.
Seller is responsible for delivery of goods to the carrier at the place of delivery on the agreed date or within the agreed period.
Seller is responsible for damage or loss of goods until they are handed over to the carrier at the named point and within the specified time.
Seller has to contract or organize the transport of goods to the named place of destination. If such a place does not exist, the seller can choose the point that best suits this purpose.
One of the seller obligations is operating according to all transport-related security requirements for transport to the destination.
Seller has to carry out and pay for export clearance, as well as assisting the buyer with correct information/paperwork for buyer to do import clearance.
Seller counts and weigh goods and, if required, packs the goods at its own expense.
Seller informs the buyer about the delivery of goods to the carrier and provides the buyer with documents authorizing the buyer to take over the goods.
The seller is not obliged to make a contract of insurance but must provide information for this purpose at the buyer’s request.

What are the buyer’s obligations?

Buyer takes up the delivery of the goods.
He takes responsibility for damage or loss of goods from the time they have been handed over to the carrier.
Buyer accepts documents provided by the seller.
Buyer has to carry out and pay for import clearance, as well as assist the seller with information if required for export clearance.
Buyer informs the seller about the place and date of delivery.
The buyer is not obliged to make a contract of carriage.
The buyer is not obliged to make a contract of insurance.

Delivery of goods

If the CPT Incoterms® rule is applied, the seller must contract for the carriage of the goods and hand them over to the carrier. At this point, the risk passes to the buyer.

Insurance of goods on the terms of Incoterms® 2020 CPT

The involved parties are not required to make a contract of insurance, but it is recommended.

Incoterms 2020 CPT in transport

CPT Incoterms can be used for any mode of transport as well as for multimodal transport.

CPT and other Incoterms rules

Compared to EXW, with the CPT rule, the seller at his expense at the request of the buyer provides him with transport documents, and the buyer is not obliged to contract for the carriage of the goods. Unlike the rule CIP, the buyer does not have to, at the request of the seller, provide the information and documents needed for obtaining insurance.
In comparison with the Incoterms® 2010, for CPT 2020 the seller is not obliged to provide information at the buyer’s request for obtaining insurance.

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Carriage Paid To Incoterms 2020 Rule – Key Changes & Updates

The CPT rule has two important places, the place of delivery in the seller’s country and the destination to where the seller contracts the carriage. It is important to not confuse the two.

Despite being recommended in place of CFR for cross-ocean container shipments this rule in practice is largely unworkable for them. This is because in such shipments the buyer wants to only take on the risk of damage or loss of the goods when they have actually been exported. Initially the buyer is not only unaware of when or where delivery has occurred but also to whom, as it will be the seller’s carrier. They do not want to be faced with any possibilities of having to deal with any problems whatsoever in the exporting country. The seller has no obligation to put the goods on board a ship by a given date, but as it is using its own contracted carrier it should be easily able to obtain an on- board bill of lading.

Important note: Even though the carriage may be paid to a final overseas destination the place of delivery risk transfer will be in the exporter’s country.

September 8, 2020 News & Events admin

NSW Going Global- grow your Digital Tech business in UK and US

This information session will provide details about the Digital Tech export programs to the UK and/or USA so you can prepare an application. Hear more about opportunities for growing your technology business in the United Kingdom and/or the United States of America.

About this Event

As part of Going Global, the NSW Government invites expressions of interest from NSW Digital Technology businesses (including those in subsectors of Fintech, Insurtech, Cybersecurity, Agtech, Space, Cleantech, and other emerging technology fields) to participate in our program to gain better access to key markets. The event will be held
Target audience – NSW businesses who are:

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs)
Export capable or export ready
Looking to start exporting or diversify into new export markets
Able to commit time and resources to complete a 10-month program
Willing and able to travel to Sydney for workshops and program events as may be required and to the selected market in 2021 should border restrictions be eased. The majority of the Program will be delivered online due to COVID-19 restrictions
Committed to adapting a product or services to ensure suitability for the targeted export market.

Whether you have applied already, or are simply curious about the program – everyone is welcome to attend
The information session will cover:

Export opportunities and trends for the Digital Technology sector
Insights on which market(s) could be the best for your business
Q&A discussion about the program.

About the NSW Going Global Program
The program has been designed specifically to help NSW exporters to expand internationally. To see the brochure or learn more about the 15 tailored programs covering nine markets and ten sectors, visit the Going Global website.

Next steps

Following this information session, applicants will be encouraged to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) and an export plan , which will be used to assess readiness and suitability.

September 8, 2020 News & Events admin

Workplace mental health

Mental Health within the workplace has never been as important as it is today! Did you know that one in 5 Australian workers is currently experiencing a mental health condition? That should be no surprise with all that is going on in the world.

As the owner of a recruitment agency where the unemployment rate is forecast to hit 11%, I find that extremely distressing both personally and professionally.

Unemployment Rates (15+) by State and Territory, June 2020 (%)

It felt like overnight that myself and my team transitioned from Recruitment Consultants to Counsellors. The amount of people that we have heard from that have been affected extremely hard by COVID-19 is distressing and quite hard to hear day after day.

So, I wanted to share some insight into what I think can assist both Employers and Employees to work through this tough period in all of our lives.

Employers

Healthy workplaces promote mental health and wellbeing. They are positive and productive and get the best out of everyone in the workplace. Businesses that care about good mental health and wellbeing attract and keep top talent because they’re great places to work. The facts are clear: as well as benefiting employees, a mentally healthy workplace is also better for your bottom line.

A healthy workplace provides a positive ROI

You can read more in this Research, which has shown that for every dollar you spend creating a mentally healthy workplace can, on average, result in a positive return on investment of 2.3.

These benefits are derived from a reduction in reduced productivity at work, absenteeism, and compensation claims.

Staff will be more engaged

Investing in creating a more mentally healthy workplace is beneficial to all staff. As a result, employees will be more engaged, more motivated, morale will be higher and staff will be more willing to go above and beyond the requirements of their role.

All of this will add even more to your return on investment and makes for a happier and healthier workplace that will retain good staff.

Employees are the organisations most important asset

Creating a mentally healthy workplace needs to be as important for organisations as creating a physically healthy workplace. Ultimately, workplace health is a leadership issue, and change must start at the top. Organisational leaders play a critical role in driving policies and practices that promote mental health. They are able to positively influence workplace culture, management practices and the experience of employees.

Employees

Work can make us feel good about ourselves and give us a sense of purpose; it’s an important way to help us to protect and improve our mental health and wellbeing. However, sometimes work and life stress can negatively affect our mental health and our ability to do our jobs.

Many of us spend a large part of our days at work so your workplace and how we go about doing our work has a substantial impact on our mental health.

While much of our working environment is determined by others, individually we can take steps that will help to protect and enhance our mental health and wellbeing.

Below are some strategies for managing your work role.

Set realistic deadlines and deliver on time
Take you annual leave
Switch off your technology
Flexible working arrangements
Find ways to reduce stress

COVID-19 has forced all of us to rethink the way we not only work but also live in our “new” day to day lives. Be mindful of what you say to someone and how you say it because no one knows what the other is going through right now.

Stay Safe!

September 7, 2020 News & Events admin

The Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) marked its 53rd anniversary

On 8 August 2020, the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) marked its 53rd anniversary. Looking back on half a century of development, ASEAN has made a tremendous journey since its inception in 1967. The remarkable achievements ASEAN has made, far exceed what the founding fathers of ASEAN had imagined.

From just five Southeast Asian countries, the organisation has doubled in size and has grown to become a family of 10 nations including Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam, living in peace, stability, dialogue and cooperation.

Current ASEAN chairman Pham Binh Minh, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam highlighted the following at the virtual official ASEAN Day Celebration in Jakarta on August 8 2020.

“Today, the ASEAN community is a big family of six hundred and fifty million people with a combined GDP of three trillion USD. Translating its vision into actions, ASEAN has been promoting both the interest of our people and peace and prosperity in the Asia – Pacific.
ASEAN is now at a critical juncture. The new dynamism in our geostrategic landscape, emerging regional and global issues require ASEAN to be ever more cohesive and responsive.”

September 7, 2020 News & Events admin

Going Global – Grow your cleantech business in India

Going Global - Grow your cleantech business in India

The NSW Government invites all interested business to attend the introductory section on how to grow cleantech business in India. The webinar will be held on Thursday, 10 September, 3pm-4pm EAST and it will provide details about the Going Global-Pathway to India export assistance program targeted at NSW cleantech businesses.

About the event

As part of Going Global, the NSW Government invites expressions of interest from NSW Cleantech businesses to participate in our first virtual market access program.

The program targets NSW businesses who are:

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs)
Export capable or export ready
Looking to start exporting or diversify into new export markets
Able to commit time and resources to complete a 10-month program
Willing and able to travel to Sydney for workshops and program events as may be required and to the selected market in 2021 should border restrictions be eased. The majority of the Program will be delivered online due to COVID-19 restrictions
Committed to adapting a product or services to ensure suitability for the targeted export market

About the Program

The Going Global-Pathway to India Program is being delivered in partnership with Fusion Co-Innovation labs and will assist NSW Cleantech companies to connect with the India market, validate their product-market fit and provide tailored coaching to high-quality market-ready companies. For companies that get selected, the program will offer specialised online sessions, bespoke mentoring and ongoing advisory support.
Whether you have applied already, or are simply curious about the program – everyone is welcome to attend.

The information session will cover:

Export opportunities and trends for Cleantech in India
Insights on the Indian market from experts
Q&A discussion about the program
About the NSW Going Global Program

You will hear from:

Manoj Kumar – Founder and Chairman of Social Alpha
Smita Rakesh – Portfolio Lead, Clean Energy & Climate Action, Social Alpha
Dr G. Ganesh Das – CEO Clean Energy International Incubation Centre (CEIIC), Government of India and Tata Trusts
Dr Andrew Mears – CEO and Founder SwitchDin

About the NSW Going Global Program

The program has been designed specifically to help NSW exporters to expand internationally. To learn more about the 15 tailored programs covering nine markets and ten sectors, please visit the Going Global website.
Following this information session, applicants will be encouraged to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) and an export plan, which will be used to assess readiness and suitability.
Apply via the Going Global website by Thursday 18th September 2020. Read more here.

September 7, 2020 News & Events admin

The Commonwealth moves to rein in agreements with foreign governments

The Australian Commonwealth Constitution (the Commonwealth) has an interesting history including its development through a series of Constitutional Conventions between the representative of state governments and other interested parties.

At one stage, New Zealand was considering joining the Commonwealth and Western Australia only joined at a relatively late stage. Its structure is in many ways a compromise of many parties with the Crown and its representative in the Governor-General having a senior role (our Constitution Act was a schedule to an Act of the United Kingdom which has since been remedied), with some powers reserved to the Commonwealth, some powers reserved to the states and territories (including income tax which the states relinquished during the Second World War) with other powers reserved both to the Commonwealth and the states and territories (such as in health) with a provision for the Commonwealth laws to prevail over state and territorial laws in the event of any inconsistency. The states and territories then generally legislate for the local government level in their states and territories.

There is significant jurisprudence on the various provisions and relative rights including cases currently headed to the High Court on how state border controls on COVID–19 interact with the freedoms of interstate trade and commerce and movement of persons provided in the Constitution. Sadly, few (if any) of those cases create as much popular interest as that portrayed in the movie The Castle although, in its day, the decision of the High Court in the Franklin Dams case extended the Commonwealth’s “external affairs” power to allow it to stop the Franklin Dam based on the Commonwealth’s powers and obligations under international environmental agreements. The “external affairs” power in particular, have expanded over time.

The national press on 27 August 2020 carried stories of moves by the federal government to increase its controls by allowing the Commonwealth Foreign Minister to cancel agreements, including the memorandum of understanding’s (MOUs) that states, territories, local governments and universities enter into with overseas governments where that cancellation is believed to be in the national interest.

While the obvious issue of the Victorian government’s signing of the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative has caused public tension, the levels of control of foreign interests have been increasing. While our free trade agreements had relaxed the controls of foreign investment requiring review by the Foreign Interest Review Board and Commonwealth approval, that role has been increased in recent times. For example, very recently the Commonwealth Treasurer rejected the proposed deal by a Japanese-owned beverage company to sell its Australian dairy and fruit juice business to a Chinese company. Kirin struck a deal in November to divest its Lion Dairy and Drinks subsidiary to the China Mengniu Dairy.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission approved the sale on competition grounds in February 2020 but the deal has now been terminated due to the failure to secure approval from the Federal Treasurer. Other increases in control have included 2018 legislation for the Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme and the Security of Critical Infrastructure Scheme. The aim of both pieces of legislation was clear – to make it clearer who represented foreign interests in dealings with the Commonwealth government and to ensure that foreign interests could not acquire assets known as “critical infrastructure”.

States and territory governments with existing agreements directly with a foreign government will have to report back to the Commonwealth Government within three months. All states and territories, local councils and universities will have to complete a review of all their agreements within a six month period. A division will be established within The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trad to review the existing agreements and advise the Foreign Minister whether the agreement, MOU or other understanding is in the national interest. The decision would then fall to the Foreign Minister based on the advice.

The new regime will also apply so that approval by the Foreign Minister will be required before negotiations can commence and the final form of document and arrangement will also require approval by the Foreign Minister. The new laws will exclude commercial corporations and state-owned enterprises and universities that are not arms of a foreign government such as military universities. This will create a significant new level of review and control of agreements struck by our Universities and State and Territory Governments which are already in place and provide funding and other support which may now become unavailable – at the same time as those parties need that funding.

Final thoughts underlying all of these different forms of scheme and government control, while it is clear that Australia “remains open for business” for foreign interests, the regulation of that involvement has moved beyond competition concerns to the wider (and more uncertain) concerns of “national interest” which could change over time and also change with the interests of politics and the electorate. For now, we will watch the new legislation carefully and if the legislation does pass then it will need to be added to the due diligence checklists of government officers, investors, lawyers and foreign parties looking to enter into agreements of whatever type with State, Territory or local governments.

This article was first published in August 2020 by Daily Cargo News.

September 7, 2020 News & Events admin

Public consultations on possible reforms to geographical indications regulatory framework

DFAT have launched a public consultation process on possible reforms to Australia’s regulatory framework for the protection of geographical indications (GIs). Australia is currently negotiating a free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU). Consistent with its approach toward other FTA partners, the EU has identified the protection of GIs as one of its key goals.

Last year, the Australian Government ran a public objections process in relation to the specific terms the EU has asked Australia to protect as GIs. The Government has made no commitment to protect specific EU GIs, and has made clear it would only consider doing so if the overall FTA deal is in Australia’s interests. In particular, the final deal must provide Australia with commercially-significant, new market access, including for our agricultural products.

Should Australia agree to protect specific EU GI terms through the FTA and change the way we currently protect GIs, we would need to amend our law. The purpose of the new consultations process is to seek the views of Australian producers, businesses and consumers on policy considerations to inform the possible development of a new Australian GI right. Your views will help ensure any new regulatory framework, should one be developed, best serves the interests and the needs of Australian farmers, businesses and consumers.

Nothing in this consultation means the Australian Government has agreed or will agree, to make any changes to its existing GI regulatory framework or policy.
The consultation process will run until 30 November. There are a number of ways you can engage in the consultations process, including by providing a submission, completing an online survey, or attending an online webinar or roundtable.

Further details on the consultations process, including a consultation paper, can be found here.

The ECA encourages you to participate in this process. We also ask you to send your comments to us as well so we can continue to advocate on your behalf as the AU – EU FTA negotiations continue info@export.org.au.

September 4, 2020 News & Events admin

Will China’s solid waste import ban apply to recycable materials?

Will China's solid waste import ban apply to recycable materials?

We advised in our last Global Trade Updates newsletter ( GTU) news of the upcoming ban on the import all solid waste into China effective 1 January 2021.
We highlight below an article from Shipping Australia that provides further updates on this topic.

Shipping Australia’s article also states that imports of all solid waste into China will be completely banned effective 1 January 2021, according to the Steamship Mutual P&I Club. The existing licensing regime for the import of solid wastes will therefore no longer apply from that date. The ban will even apply to solid wastes that can be reused or recycled into raw materials, such as cargoes of scrap metal, paper, cardboard and wood.
However, media reports indicate that scrap metals and other such goods may possibly be re-classified as recyclable materials and that would be subject to purity standards. China also intends to run down the import volumes of solid wastes during the remainder of this year. The whole article you can find here.

September 2, 2020 News & Events admin

Certain Aspects of the Treaty-Making Process in Australia

In August the ECA presented a submission to the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties (JSCOT) regarding certain aspects of the treaty-making process in Australia.

Treaties strengthen commercial ties between nations, improve market access through the reduction and removal of tariffs and address a multitude of other trade issues including intellectual property, standards, investments and government procurement.

We know that Free Trade Agreements and other trade-related treaties are not silver bullets for international success. However, they are vital to the strength and growth of the Australian economy.

Australia has been an active international actor supporting trade liberalisation through FTAs. As of August 2020, Australia has an FTA in force with eight of our top ten trade partners and is in current FTA negotiations with the remaining two (India and the United Kingdom).

In this submission, the ECA made several recommendations to increase the active involvement and participation of key stakeholders throughout the treaty-making process, notably small and medium enterprises (SMEs) involved in international trade.

Greater engagement with SMEs during the negotiation stage of trade agreements serves to strengthen the utilisation and participation rates of trade treaties.

SMEs should be a key consideration for Government bodies who manage and have oversight over the process. Especially as they represent 87% of all exporting businesses.

We argued in our submission that increasing the scope and range of voices included in the negotiation process of treaties will enrich the treaties and also generate an enhanced understanding of the treaty agenda, the benefits of treaties, the dates of adoption of treaties and success stories of Australian traders.

The full submission is available here.

August 25, 2020 News & Events admin

WA Government invests $40 million to grow food and aquaculture industry

The WA Government announced last week it will invest more than $40 million to grow WA’s food industries, develop the aquaculture industry, and support the expansion of premium food and beverage manufacturing.

A key initiative is the $16.7 million four-year Food and Beverage Fund, a State-wide investment in financial incentives, capacity development and professional services support for food and beverage businesses.

The first component of the Fund – the Value Add Investment Grants – is now open for applications. Information about the Grants and how to apply can be found on DPIRD’s website.

To get this information to as wide an audience as possible, can you consider sharing this information with your industry members via your communications channels.

You can email the team at AFTprograms@dpird.wa.gov.au if they have any further queries. The team is available to provide support to your members during the application process. They also want to hear your feedback to ensure that programs in the Food and Beverage Fund are aligned to your industry’s needs over the next four years.

Also last week, WA Government launched Investor Readiness Masterclasses program, in partnership with BDO. It aims to assist companies that have strong growth potential but have reached a point where future growth requires external funding. The Masterclasses support these companies to be ‘investor ready.’

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