Sea transport was born quite early compared to other modes of transport. In the 5th century BC, people knew how to use the sea to communicate between different regions, as a route between countries in the world. Therefore, Sea transport has been strongly developed to this day and has become the most modern transport industry in international transport systems.

I . Some general overviews of sea transport

1. Characteristics of the technical economy of sea transport.

Sea transport can serve all types of goods in international trade.
Transport routes on the sea are mostly natural traffic routes.
The carrying capacity of sea transport is quite large and this mode of transport is not limited like other modes of transport.
The most outstanding advantage of sea transport is its low cost.

However, this method of transportation also has some disadvantages:

• Depends a lot on weather factors and natural conditions.
• The speed of ships is quite low and the increase in operating speed of ships is quite limited.

From the above characteristics, we can draw a general conclusion as follows:
-Sea transport is suitable for transporting goods in international trade.
-Sea transport is suitable for transporting goods in large volumes over long distances but does not require quick delivery time.

2. The effects of maritime transport on international trade.

– Is an inseparable element in international trade.
– Promote international trade circulation to develop more
– Help development to contribute to changing the commodity structure and market structure in international trade circulation.
– Impact on the international balance of payments.

3. Technical facilities of sea transport mode

Sea routes

These are routes connecting two or more ports together, on which ships operate to transport passengers or goods.
Seaport
is the place where ships enter and exit, where ships and goods on board are always served and is an extremely important traffic hub of a coastal country.
Means of transport
Means of transport are mainly seagoing ships. Ships are divided into two types: merchant ships and military ships.
Merchant ships are ships used for economic purposes in the maritime world. Cargo ships are known as a type of merchant ship that accounts for the highest proportion of merchant fleets.

II. Methods of chartering ships to transport goods

1. In international shipping, there are two common types of ship chartering:

• Method of chartering a market boat
• Method of chartering ships by trip

Form of chartering a market boat

1.1. Concept and some characteristics of market ships
a. The concept of
a market ship is a type of ship that runs regularly on a certain route and visits certain ports according to a predetermined schedule.
Market trains often operate on certain routes, so people also call it route shopping. Train schedules are often announced by shipping companies on mass media to best serve customers.

b.Characteristics of market ships

Market ships often carry small quantities of general goods.
The structure is very complicated compared to other types of ships.
Conditions of carriage of goods are prescribed by shipping lines and are pre-printed on the ocean bill of lading to be issued to the shipper.

1.2. Methods of chartering market boats

a.Concept

Chartering a market train is also known as storing market train freight

Chartering a ship means that the goods owner, directly or through a broker, is required to transfer a ship to him or her, renting a part of the ship to transport goods from one port to another.

The relationship between the tenant and the landlord in this method is signed by a document called abill of lading. The content of the bill of lading is pre-determined by shipping lines.

b. Steps to proceed with chartering a market boat

Boat rental process

Step 1: The goods owner goes through brokers and asks them to find a ship to transport the goods to them.

Step 2: The broker offers the ship and asks for the ship by sending the ship freight record

Freight storage papers are usually pre-printed into templates and have the necessary information so people can fill them in when used. Goods owners can store freight for an entire quarter or year with a signed freight storage contract. with the shipping company.

Step 3: The broker and the shipowner will agree on a number of key terms during the process of loading, unloading and transporting goods.

Step 4: The broker will have to notify the goods owner of the freight storage results with the ship owner.

Step 5: The goods owner picks up the ship’s schedule to transport the goods outside the port and deliver them to the ship.
Step 6: After the goods have been loaded on the ship, the shipowner or the shipowner’s representative will issue the goods owner a signed set of freight bills of lading.

1.3. Sea bill of lading

This is a type of document transporting goods by sea issued by the carrier or the carrier’s representative to the shipper after the goods have been loaded on the ship or after receiving the goods for loading. ship.

a.Effect of ocean bill of lading

– Is the legal basis for regulating the relationship between the person loading the goods, receiving the goods and the carrier.

– Is the basis for customs declaration and procedures for import and export of goods.

– Is the basis for confirming goods and determining the quantity of goods that the seller sends to the buyer and based on that to record books, make statistics, and monitor whether or not they have fulfilled their responsibilities as specified in the contract. Foreign trade contract .

– Bill of lading combined with other documents of the goods to create a set of payment documents.

– Is an important document in a set of documents complaining about the insurer, or other related people.
– Used as a document to mortgage, buy, sell, and transfer goods recorded on the bill of lading…
b. Classification of bills of lading

Bill of lading is very diverse and rich, it is used for different jobs depending on the content shown on the bill of lading. According to the Vietnam Maritime Code, bills of lading are issued in 3 forms: bill of lading by name, bill of lading to order and bill of lading presented.

c. Notes when using ocean bills of lading

Bill of lading is a very important document in the process of shipping, insurance, payment and claims (if any). Therefore, when creating and using a bill of lading, you need to note the following points:

Firstly, ocean bills of lading often have references to some popular international conventions such as Hague Rules, Hague Visby Rules or Hamburge Rules. On the contrary, in the world there is no convention that can regulate secondary bills of lading.

Second, the bill of lading only stipulates the rights and obligations of theshipping carrierrelated to loading, unloading, unloading and returning goods arising from charter contracts. In contrast, the secondary bill of lading also contains legal regulations on transportation by sea, river and rail. Therefore, the legal space of secondary bills of lading is quite wider than ocean bills of lading.

Third, in secondary bills of lading, the delivery and return locations are often recorded, not simply the loading port and unloading port.

Fourth, the ocean bill of lading always clearly states: goods have been loaded onto the ship or received for loading on board the ship. In contrast, secondary bills of lading often state: received for transport because they can be transported by sea. river, road…

Fifth, in the ocean bill of lading, the consignor is called the shipper, and in the secondary bill of lading, the consignor is called the consignor. In the ocean bill of lading, it is always written that the consignee is either named or by order, but in the secondary bill of lading, it is always recorded as: the goods are delivered and received by order.

Sixth, the ocean bill of lading always has a function as a document to receive the right to dispose of goods, but with secondary bills of lading, whether this feature is added or not is agreed upon by both parties when issued.

Seventh, the ocean carrier is not responsible for the late arrival of the goods, but the freight forwarder is responsible for the late arrival of the goods. Sometimes they will have to pay double the freight for damages. Damage due to late delivery.

Eighth, the statute of limitations for complaints in ocean bills of lading is usually 1 year, while in secondary bills of lading it is only about 9 months.

Ninth, the ocean bill of lading only needs 01 stamp and 01 signature because it is only issued after the goods have been loaded on the ship. Meanwhile, the secondary bill of lading is issued upon receipt of goods for transport, so it must have an additional seal and 01 signature to confirm that the goods have been loaded onto the ship (note the date of issuance of the secondary bill of lading and the date Loading may vary).

However, the distinction between these two types of bills of lading is only assessed as relative. It is important that when you have a bill of lading in hand, you must consider what type it is and who is the issuer so that when there is a loss, it can be resolved promptly and to the right person.

d. Shipping certificate by sea

Bill of lading is one of the most important documents of international sales when goods are transported by sea transport. However, the bill of lading also has many disadvantages as follows:

Firstly, when the goods have arrived at the port and are unloaded, but the recipient does not have a bill of lading to receive the goods because the journey time of the goods at sea is shorter than the time it takes to send the bill from the loading port to the unloading port.
Second, receipts are not suitable for the application of modern automatic data transmission means (fax, teleax…), so the use of receipts in payment and receipt of goods… Requires original documents.
Third, printing receipts requires a lot of effort and is expensive because the letters printed on the back of the receipt are usually very small, only about 0.3mm to prevent counterfeiting.
Fourth, using receipts may pose risks in the delivery of goods (if any unit is stolen) because receipts are documents of ownership of goods….