What the price of a container from China depends on
Sea freight between two ports is only part of the cost of bringing a container to your warehouse. Sea freight rates change from month to month, so the exact price is in the quote for your shipment. It depends on:
- The route. The port of departure in China and the port of arrival: Thessaloniki, Durres or Bar. A full container leaves from the port nearest the supplier, anywhere in China. Consolidated shipments leave from Ningbo.
- The sailing. The routes via Suez and around Africa differ in time and in price. The routing can change, so every quote has a validity period.
- The season. Rates rise before the Christmas season, around Chinese New Year and before China's National Day holiday from 1 to 8 October.
- The container type. 20', 40' HQ or 45' HQ.
- The goods. Volume, weight and any special handling.
- The scope of the quote. To the port, to the customs warehouse or to your warehouse.
What makes up the total cost
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| Charge | What it covers | How it is charged |
|---|---|---|
| Charges in China | Trucking to the port, export documents, terminal charges | Per container. Under FOB the supplier pays them |
| Sea freight | Sailing to the port of arrival, with transshipment | Per container, plus the shipping line's surcharges |
| Documents | Bill of lading, release of the goods | Per bill of lading |
| Port of arrival | Handling and release of the container | Per container |
| Inland transport | Truck from the port to your city | Per container, per trip |
| Demurrage and detention | A container kept beyond the free days, at the port or at your warehouse | Per day, per container |
| Customs clearance, duty and VAT | Handled by your forwarder, outside our quote | Calculated by your forwarder |
We do not carry out customs clearance. A forwarder handles clearance, duty and VAT, your own or one we recommend. We deliver the goods to the customs warehouse and hand over the export documents and the documents needed for clearance. Many clients already have their own forwarder. Ask your forwarder for the duty and VAT on your goods, and add them with your freight quote in the landed cost calculator.
How much a 20', a 40' HQ and a 45' HQ hold
The internal volume and the maximum payload follow the Maersk specification. The practical load with cartons is lower and depends on the carton sizes and the loading plan.
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| Container | Internal volume (Maersk) | Practical load with cartons | Maximum payload (Maersk) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20' | 33 m³ | about 30 CBM | 28,200 kg |
| 40' HQ | 76 m³ | about 70 CBM | 28,620 kg |
| 45' HQ | 85 m³ | about 75 CBM | 27,600 kg |
For toys, decorations, office supplies and household goods, volume is the deciding factor. For tiles, metal and liquids it is weight, and road weight limits in the region often keep the load below the container's payload. The CBM calculator works out the volume of your cartons.
A fuller container costs less per cubic metre
A container is paid for in full, however much is loaded in it, so one filled to its practical load costs considerably less per cubic metre than one filled halfway. If you do not have enough goods, the alternative is a shared container (LCL), charged per CBM with a minimum of 1 CBM. The comparison is in the guide LCL or FCL.
The same goods brought in as four separate shipments mean four sets of handling charges, four bills of lading and most likely four customs clearances. When we collect goods from several suppliers in our warehouse, they leave as one shipment. A toys wholesaler we work with imports more than 10 times a year, and at that frequency good use of the container space matters more than the lowest rate on a single booking.
What to look for in a quote
In 20 years of trade with China, we have seen three problems with quotes more often than any others.
A quote that ends at the port. The port charges, the truck to your warehouse, the forwarder and the duties come on top of it. Two quotes can be compared when they end at the same place and cover the same type of container.
CIF or DDP from the Chinese seller. Under CIF the seller pays the freight and minimum insurance to the port, but the risk passes to the buyer at loading in China. The seller chooses the carrier, and the buyer pays the charges after arrival, often at rates the buyer never agreed. Under DDP the seller promises to pay every cost, duty and VAT included, but the buyer does not know who declares the goods or at what value.
A quote without a validity period. A summer rate does not automatically apply in the autumn. A quote should state the date, the route, the container type and its validity period.
How we prepare a quote
Our strongest operational presence is in Yiwu. In our own warehouses in Yiwu and Ningbo, we collect goods from several suppliers, count them and check them before loading. A full container at a factory in another city is checked by our agent at the factory, anywhere in China. A wrong product or a short shipment costs far more than a difference in the sea freight rate. We issue our own bills of lading, and at Thessaloniki, Durres and Bar we have a direct presence and annual shipping contracts.
Our quote lists each charge separately, as far as the customs warehouse or your warehouse, with a date and a validity period. If the market moves before the booking, we tell you whether the quote changes and why.
Transit times are covered in the guide how long shipping from China takes, and the service on the pages container shipping from China and shipping from China to Macedonia. The landed cost calculator adds up the amounts from your quotes.
Get a quote
Send us the packing list, or at least the approximate number of cartons with their dimensions, the supplier's location and the delivery address. You will receive a quote for your shipment. Request a quote.
