The systems developed to link the shippers, transport operators, port authorities, bankers, insurance companies, Customs, consignees and others concerned in the business of international trade are constantly being adapted to meet the changing needs associated in particular with the speed of modern transport and express freight deliveries and the convenience attainable through the use of containers, and also to take advantage of the possibilities that technology offers for improving information processing and transmission.
Today information flows are at a point midway between paper documents still often painfully filled in by hand, those produced by computer but still sent manually (and often re-entered manually into another computer) and the world of automatic data transmission where data are sent from computer to computer with minimal human intervention.
The timely arrival of information is a vital component in any international trade transaction; but frequently the goods arrive at the destination before the information needed by the operators to perform their function. Delays in information production and transfer can be reduced if agreement is reached to make the maximum use of modern information technology, e.g. computerizing the preparation of required documents, sending copies by facsimile transmission, or using Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). Where this is too far advanced, the use of standard aligned documents can provide a solution for simplifying document preparation. However more needs to be done to facilitate the information flows (i.e. how the data are collected, transferred and dealt with). While part of the answer may lie in the simplification of the official and commercial procedures themselves, there should be in addition some systematic way of handling information relevant to the technology available. The advent of cheap and reliable computers even in the least advanced countries offers enormous opportunities. So does the progress achieved in telecommunications facilities.
The problems created by trade documents and procedures fall into two categories: the supply of data; and the complexity of some of the procedures. As stated above goods often arrive before the information which should precede them and which is essential if they are to be dealt with expeditiously. Some companies take very expensive solutions, e.g. the use of courier services, to avoid delays due to missing documents at critical points in the transaction chain. However, this can be efficient only if despatches are adjusted to the speed of the best practical performance that can be expected in average international transactions. The complexity of some of the procedures may greatly increase the loss of efficiency if steps are not taken to minimize the amount of information required while goods are in transit. More generally, procedural requirements should be re-examined and manual systems tidied up before information technology can, with safety and economic advantage, be systematically applied.
In theory, there should be nothing inherently too complicated in the systems and procedures for selling goods from one country to another. Indeed, apart from additional official requirements caused by the protection of national interests, this should replicate the procedures carried out in any domestic market. The difficulties arise in part from the sheer scale of the operations and in part from the vast number of people, interests, nations and languages involved. What may appear as a facilitation solution in one part of this network can, and often does, create difficulties in another. To take an example, Preshipment Inspection (PSI), which may be appropriate to solve a specific problem in the importing country, can impede the exporter, and the latter incorporates the costs incurred into his selling price; the resulting costs of PSI are finally borne by the final consumer of the goods in the importing country. (See recommendations I.2, I.3, I.14, I.15 and I.42)
Buyer and seller want to see their agreement for the sale and purchase of goods accomplished with the minimum of complication and cost against the background of their total production control and marketing arrangements. The seller wants sure payment and a safe timely arrival of his goods so that a single transaction is not only satisfactory to both parties but also contributes to the possibility of future business. The buyer wants to receive the goods he has agreed to buy at the place and time provided in his contract in good condition and with no more formalities or exertion on his part than are reasonably necessary to obtain possession and make payment.
Carrying and handling interests want to be able to receive and deliver the goods on behalf of their clients with the minimum of complication. They also seek to fulfil this function in ways and under conditions conforming as closely as possible with their own requirements for the effective operation of their transport and handling resources.
The banker wants to finance and facilitate payment for his customers' trade transactions by means which, while meeting individual requirements as closely as possible, will give proper weight to prudent precautions against loss or misunderstanding. In this he needs the prompt presentation of documents which comply with the terms of the instructions he has received. Any variation in the documents, particularly when payment is made in the framework of a Documentary Credit, will result in delays for correction or verification.
However reasonable and economically justified such needs are, it is by no means uncommon for the requirements of one commercial concern or trade to conflict with those of another. Individual needs and incompatibilities must be identified before they can be reconciled and reconciled before they can be met. The best people to explain their needs will always be the commercial interests themselves, but this requires that they have ample means of expressing their views through a variety of organizations, including national trade facilitation bodies, as recommended by the UN/ECE Working Party on Facilitation of International Trade Procedures (WP.4) (ECE/FAL Recommendation No.4). (See recommendation A.1)
As mentioned above, the requirements of both governments and commercial operators to monitor and control the movement of goods and payment thereof drive the procedures and paperwork generated in international trade. Whilst the ultimate destination of the information may be divided between the official and commercial sectors, during the transaction the data required by both sectors remain closely and inextricably linked. Commercial requirements are devised by the trading parties to meet their own needs and are therefore malleable and easily adaptable to comply with changing trade practices. By contrast, official requirements are enforced and controlled by governments and have diverse aims, such as fiscal, protective, trade control and health requirements. The facilitation of trade may not be the primary purpose so the possibility of change can be limited or at the best very slow.
Those asking for and those providing information each have certain responsibilities. The essence of the technical task is to move minimum information with maximum efficiency. The criterion should be the minimum information necessary to service the transaction and not the minimum that people would like to obtain for other purposes. This puts a special responsibility on those interests, especially governments, banks and other credit institutions, which are in a position to enforce their data requirements.
Regardless of the end use of the data, the timely arrival of information, certainly before the arrival of the goods, is a vital component in any international trade transaction. As world distances "shrink" and travel times are reduced, it is essential that information is transmitted using the quickest, most effective method available to the parties involved. If it arrives after the cargo, the best information in the world will still cause acute problems, especially in the port community. Whilst it is appreciated that the technology available in different parts of the world may differ, where possible the use of modern technology should be encouraged, and suitable conditions for such use (including the necessary legal or regulatory framework) should be established in the countries concerned.