The Mode of Transport Depends on the terms specified in the contract entered between the exporter and importer. These are the following modes of transport that are normally, mentioned in the contract.
Sea Transport Sea transport involves carriage of goods by the ship from the point of shipment to port of discharge. The contract of carriage of cargo by sea refers to the contract between the shipper and shipping company (carrier) for transportation of goods against payment remuneration, known as freight, to the carrier. The shipper may be exporter or Consignor becomes the shipper when he is acting on behalf of the exporter. Exporter may enter into the contract with overseas buyer and later the exporter may enter into another contract with a third party for execution of the export contract. In such a case, the third party consigns the goods and sends the bill of lading, duly endorsed, to the exporter for negotiation of documents. In bill of lading, the third party becomes the consignor. In a similar way, buyer may be buying the goods on behalf of a customer. In such a case, buyer requests the exporter to send the goods direct to the customer's destination. With the development of trade, exporter may not be the real supplier of goods and buyer may not be the actual customer. Exporter and importer may he acting for different parties and in such an event, goods move direct from the port of actual supply to the port of destination where the actual consumer is located.
