Glossary of Trade & Shipping Terms

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Glossary of Trade & Shipping Terms - B

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Balance of Payments - The balance of payments is a statistical summary of international transactions. These transactions are defined as the transfer of ownership of something that has an economic value measurable in monetary terms from residents of one country to residents of
Balance on - " - Current account; - Goods, services, and income; - Investment income; - Merchandise trade; - Services; - Unilateral transfers See: Balance of Payments."
Banco Centroamericano de Integracion Economico - See: Central American Bank for Economic Integration.
Banco Interamericano de Desarollo - See: Inter-American Development Bank.
Banco Latinoamericano de Exportaciones - BLADEX (English: Latin American Export Bank) is a multinational bank which provides short- (95%+) and medium-term financing. Operations are conducted in U.S. dollars. Borrowers are primarily Latin American commercial banks of member countries which fi
Banco Nacional de Comercio Exterior - "BANCOMEXT, Mexico's national foreign trade bank, provides credits, guarantees, and promotion services to support Mexico's foreign trade. BANCOMEXT also assists Mexican importers by providing short-term loans to support importation of selected commodities "
Bank Advisory Committee - "The Bank Advisory Committee, which in some respects has replaced the London Club, is not a structured or formal organization. The Bank Advisory Committee consists mostly of lead bankers in an individual debtor country. The lead bankers, representing the "
Bank Affiliate Export Trading Company - An Export Trading Company partially or wholly owned by a banking institution as provided under the U.S. Export Trading Company Act.
Banker's Acceptance - "A banker's acceptance is a draft drawn on and accepted by a bank. Depending on the bank's creditworthiness, the acceptance becomes a financial instrument which can be discounted."
Banker's Bank - A bank that is established by mutual consent by independent and unaffiliated banks to provide a clearinghouse for financial transactions.
Banker's Draft - Draft payable on demand and drawn by or on behalf of the bank itself; it is regarded as cash and cannot be returned unpaid.
Bank for International Settlements - "BIS, established in 1930, promotes cooperation among central banks in international financial settlements. Members include: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Irela"
Bank Guarantee - "An assurance, obtained from a bank by a foreign purchaser; that the bank will pay an exporter up to a given amount for goods shipped if the foreign purchaser defaults. (see: Letter of Credit.)"
Bank Holding Company - "Any company which directly or indirectly owns or controls, with power to vote, more than five percent of voting shares of each of one or more other banks."
Bank of Central African States - "The bank (French: Banque des Etats de l'Afrique Central, BEAC) issues a common currency unit, the Central African Franc. Members include The Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, People's Republic of Congo, Gabon, and Equitarial Guinea. France part"
Bank Release - Negotiable time draft drawn on and accepted by a bank which adds its credit to that of an importer of merchandise.
Banque Arabe pour le Developpement Economique en Afrique - See: Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa.
Banque Centrale des Etats de l'Afrique de l'Ouest - "BECAO, which operates as a central bank under authority of the West African Monetary Union, issues the common currency for member states: Benin, Burkina Faso, C“te d'Ivoire, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo."
Banque de Developpement des Etats de l'Afrique Centrale - See: Central African States Development Bank.
Banque de Developpement des Etats du Grand Lac - See: Development Bank of the Great Lakes States.
Banque des Etats de l'Afrique Centrale - See: Bank of Central African States.
Banque Fran‡aise du Commerce Exterieur - "BFCE, a government-owned agency, is the French Government lender for officially supported export credits at preferential interest rates. The Bank, which provides financing for international trade, plays a coordinating role between exporters and the Frenc"
Banque Quest-Africaine de Developpement - See: West African Development Bank.
Barter - Trade in which merchandise is exchanged directly for other merchandise or services without use of money.
Basel Convention - "The Basel Convention restricts trade in hazardous waste, some non-hazardous wastes, solid wastes, and incinerator ash. It was adopted in 1989 by a United Nations-sponsored conference of 116 nations in Basel, Switzerland. Twenty nations must ratify the tr"
Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union - "BLEU (French: UEBL, from Union Economique Belgo-Luxembourgeoise), established in July 1921, introduced a system of monetary association between Belgium and Luxembourg."
Benelux Economic Union - "Benelux (acronym for Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg) is an economic union originally established in January 1948 and revised in January 1960. Benelux continues as an internal regional association within the European Community (EC) because the associ"
Best Information Available - "Under GATT rules, when a respondent in an antidumping or countervailing duty case either declines to provide information, or provides inadequate information, the investigating authority has the right to resort to other information, a practice known as bes"
Bilateral Clearing Agreement - A bilateral clearing agreement is a government-to-government reciprocal trade arrangement whereby two nations agree to a trade turnover of specified value over one or more years. The value of the products trade under the agreement is denominated in accou
Bilateral Investment Treaty - "A bilateral investment treaty, BIT, ensures U.S. investments abroad of national or most favored nation treatment; prohibits the imposition of performance requirements; and allows the American investor to engage top management in a foreign country without "
Bilateral Steel Agreements - "The U.S. negotiated ten bilateral steel agreements, BSAs, with major steel trading partners. Under BSAs, the governments agreed to reduce or eliminate state intervention -- that is, domestic subsidies and market barriers."
Bill of Lading - "Bills of lading are contracts between the owner of the goods and the carrier. There are two types. A straight bill of lading is nonnegotiable. A negotiable or shipper's order bill of lading can be bought, sold, or traded while goods are in transit and i"
Biological Agents - "Several classes of biological agents have been identified according to their degree of pathogenic hazard, and are controlled by the United States in accord with provisions of the Australia Group. Applications submitted to the Department of Commerce for t"
Blue Lantern - "Blue Lantern, a procedure pertaining to U.S. Munitions List items, is intended to verify that information stated on export license applications is valid and that the use of the commodity or service exported is consistent with the terms of the license. It"
Bonded Exchange - Exchange which cannot be freely converted into other currencies.
Bond System - "The Bond System, a part of Customs' Automated Commercial System, provides information on bond coverage. A Customs bond is a contract between a principal, usually an importers, and a surety which is obtained to insure performance of an obligation imposed "
Bonded Warehouses - The U.S. Customs Service authorizes bonded warehouses for storage or manufacture of goods on which payment of duties is deferred until the goods enter the Customs Territory. The goods are not subject to duties if reshipped to foreign points.
Border Cargo Selectivity - BCS is an automated cargo selectivity system based on historical and other information. The system is designed to facilitate cargo processing and to improve Customs enforcement capabilities by providing targeting information to border locations. The sys
Border Environment Cooperation Commission - The BECC is a U.S.-Mexican binational commission intended to facilitate border environmental clean-up and to provide additional support for community adjustment and investment related to the North American Free Trade Agreement. The BECC will assist borde
British High Commission - "The term British High Commission (BHC, or High Commission, HC, or Her Majesty's High Commission, HMHC) is used in lieu of ""embassy"" in Commonwealth countries."
British Overseas Trade Board - "The BOTB, located in the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), advises on international trade and guides the government's export promotion prorgram, including policy, financing, and overseas projects. The Board is composed of industry and government re"
Brussels Tariff Nomenclature - A once widely used international tariff classification system which preceded the Customs Cooperation Council Nomenclature (CCCN) and the Harmonized System Nomenclature (HS). The BTN was changed in name only to the CCCN in 1976 to avoid confusion with the
Bulk Cargo - "Bulk cargo is unbound as loaded and carried aboard ship; it is without mark or count, in a loose unpackaged form, and has homongeneous characteristics."
Bundesbank - "The Bundesbank is the German central bank. The main functions of the Bundesbank are to regulate the money supply, support the general economic policy of the federal government, and issue banknotes. It sets the key discount rate, the Lombard rate, and mi"
Bundesstelle fur Aussenhandelsinformation - See: Bundesministerium fur Wirtschaft.
Bundesministerium fur Wirtschaft - "The BMWi (German: Ministry for Economic Affairs) gathers and distributes market information and supports semiprivate and private organizations, such as overseas chambers of commerce. Within the BMWi is the Federal Office for Foreign Trade (Bundesstelle "
Bureau of International Expositions - "The Bureau of International Expositions, BIE, is an international organization established by the Paris Convention of 1928 to regulate the conduct and scheduling of international expositions in which foreign nations are officially invited to participate. "
Business Council for International Understanding - "The BCIU is an independent, non-partisan, business association which was formed at the initiative of President Eisenhower. BCIU operates the U.S. Ambassadorial and Senior Diplomat Industry Program in which most U.S. Ambassadors come to BCIU after appoint"
Business Executive Enforcement Team - "The Business Executive Enforcement Team, BEET, provides a channel for private sector executives to discuss export control enforcement matters with the Bureau of Export Administration."
Business Facilitation Office - This is usually a booth with a reference desk with product catalogs manned by the Commercial Section or a qualified contractor to assist fair visitors or buyers searching for U.S. products or services at an international trade fair.
Business Information Office - The business information office or center is a post or contract-staffed commercial reference facility usually at a scheduled international trade exhibition.
Business Information Service for the Newly Indpendent States - "BISNIS is a one-stop shop for U.S. firms interested in obtaining assistance on selling in the markets of the Newly Independent States of the former Soviet Union (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, T"
Buy American Restrictions - "BARs were derived from the Buy American Act (BAA) of March 1933 and amended by the Buy American Act of 1988. Restrictions may take several forms, including: (a) straightforward prohibition of public sector bodies from purchasing goods from foreign suppl"
Buyback - See: Countertrade.
B & T cl - Blocking & Trapping clause
B. or B/- - "Bale, Bag"
B.B. - "Bill Book, Below Bridges"
B.B.cl. - Both to blame collision clause
B.C. - Bristol Channel
b.d.i. - Both dates inclusive
B.D.I. - Both days inclusive
B.D.S. - Broker's daily statement
B.H.P. - Brake hore-power
B.I.I.B.A. - British Insurance &Investment Brokers' Association
b.m. - Board measure (timber)
B.O. - "Buyer's option, Branch Office"
B.O.T. - Board of Trade
B.P.B. - Bank Post Bill
B.R. - Builders' Risks Insurance
B.R.C. - "Broker Regulatory Committee (Lloyds's), Brokers Registration Council"
B.S. - Boiler survey. Balance sheet
B.S.T. - British Summer Time
b.t. - Berth terms
B.T.U. - Bow Thrust Unit(s)
B.th.U. - British Thermal Unit
B.V. - Bureau Veritas
B/Ch - Bristol Channel
B/D - "Bank Draft, bar draft (grain trade)"
B/E - "Bill of Exchange, Bill of Entry"
B/G - Bondage goods
B/H - "Bill of Health, Bordeaux to Hamburg inclusive"
B/L - Bill of Landing
B/O - Brought over
B/P - Bills payable
B/R - Bills receivable. Builders' risks. Bordeaux or Rouen (grain trade)
B/s - "Bags, Bales"
B/S - "Bill of Sale, Bill of Store"
B/St - Bill of sight
BACAT - Barge aboard catamaran
Bal. - Balance
Bar. - Barrel
bbls - Barrels
Bd. - "Bound, bond"
Bdls - Bundles
Bds. - Boards (timber)
Bg. - Bag
Bg. - Bag
bhp - Brake horsepower
Bk. - "Back, Backwardation, Book"
Bkge. - "Breakage, brokerage"
Bls. - Bales. Barrels
bp - Between perpendiculars
Brl. - Barrel
BTN - Brussels Tariff Nomenclature
bu - Bushels
Balance of Payments Consultations - The coordination between the GATT and the IMF to ensure that trade and payments implications of trade restrictions imposed for balance of payments reasons are taken fully into account. GATT Articles XII and XVIII allow countries to temporarily deviate fro
bale (capacity) - Total cubic capacity of a ship's hold available for carrying solid cargo.
ballast - "A heavy weight, usually sea water, necessary for the stability and safety of a ship at sea that is not carrying cargo."
bar - Sand bank that forms at the mouths of rivers and that often limits the type of ships that are able to reach up-river destinations.
base cargo - Relatively heavy cargo stowed at the bottom of a hold to provide a ship with stability when at sea or a minimum quantity of cargo required by a shipping line for calling at a port for loading.
berth - A location alongside a quay where a ship loads or discharges cargo.
Binding - "GATT Article 11 provides that signatories may ''bind'' tariff rates by including them in schedules appended to the GATT. Once a duty is bound, it may not be raised beyond that bound level without compensating affected parties."
bill of lading - "A document issued by a shipowner to a shipper of goods. It serves as a receipt for the goods, contract of carriage, and document of title."
booking - Reservation made by a shipper or his agent with a carrier to carry certain defined goods between locations.
Bound Rates - Tariff rates resulting from GATT negotiations or accession which are appended to the GATT in the form of a 'loose-leaf' tariff schedule and are enforceable under ARTICLE 11 of GATT.
bow - Curved forward part of a ship.
bulk cargo - Unpacked dry cargo such as grain or coal.
bunkers - A ship's fuel.
Buy American Act - An act mandating preferential treatment for American products when awarding some government procurement contracts. This act is waived for purchases covered by the government procurement code.
BADEA - Banque Arabe pour le Developpement Economique en Afrique
BAGGAGE - General License - BAGGAGE
BANCOMEXT - Banco Nacional de Comercio Exterior
BARs - Buy American Restrictions
BAS - Caribbean/Central America Business Advisory Service
BCEA - Banque Centrale des Etats de l'Afrique de l'Ouest
BCIE - Banco Centroamericano de Integracion Economico
BCIU - Business Council for International Understanding
BCS - Border Cargo Selectivity
BDEAC - Banque de Developpement des Etats de l'Afrique Centrale
BDEGL - Banque de Developpement des Etats du Grand Lac
BEAC - Banque des Etats de l'Afrique Centrale
BEEC - Border Environment Cooperation Commission
BEET - Business Executive Enforcement Team
BENELUX - "Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg Economic Union"
BfAi - Bundesstelle fur Aussenhandelsinformation
BFC - Business Facilitation Center
BFCE - Banque Francaise du Commerce Exterieur
BHC - "Bank Holding Company, British High Commission"
BIA - Best Information Available
BID - Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo
BIE - Bureau of International Expositions
BI - Business Information Office
BIS - Bank for International Settlements
BISNIS - "Business Information Service for the Newly Independent, States"
BIT(s) - Bilateral Investment Treaty(ies)
B/L - Bill of Lading
BLADEX - Banco Latinoamericano de Exportaciones
BLEU - Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union
BMWi - Bundesministerium fur Wirtschaft
BOAD - Banque Ouest-Africaine de Developpement
BOP - Balance of Payments
BOT - Balance of Trade
BOTB - British Overseas Trade Board
BRITE - Basic Research in Industrial Technologies in Europe
BSA - Bilateral Steel Agreement
BSP - Business Sponsored or Between Show Promotion
BTN - Brussels Tariff Nomenclature
BXA - Bureau of Export Administration