Trade Terms -Group F

Free Carrier (FCA)(...named place)
This term may be used for various modes of transport.Under this term, the seller fulfills his obligations when delivering the goods into the custody of the carrier named by the buyer at the named point on the agreed date. Carrier here means any person by whom,or in whose name, a contract of carriage by road,air,rail,sea or combination of transport modes has been made,and who undertakes the conveyance of the goods to the destination.The loss of or damage to the goods is transferred from the seller to the buyer at the time the nominated carrier accepts the goods at the prescribed place.
The seller must provide any requisite export license and customary packing,and supply the buyer with the customary transport documents (bill of lading,etc.)as proof of delivery of the goods to the carrier.The buyer must bear all the costs and the risks of the goods for the time the goods have been deliverd to the carrier.

Free Alongside Ship (FAS)(...named port of shipment)
Under this term, the obligation of the seller is realized when the goods have been placed alongside the vessel nominated by the buyer on the quay or on barges as a specified port of shipment.At this stage and thereafter the buyer has to bear all the cost ans risk of loss of or damage to the goods and the buyer is responsible for exportation and customs arrangements.This term should not be used,where the buyer cannot obtain directly or indirectly the export license.
Under FAS, the seller should arrange delivery of the contracted goods by the agreed date alongside the specified vessel at the loading berth as named by the buyer and bear all the cost and risk of the goods up to ths ship's side. The seller should provide the customary packing of the goods unless it is the custom of the trade to ship the cargo unpacked.He may also assit the buyer on request and at the buyer's expense to obtain any documents issued by the country of origin or shipment (including Certification of Origin and Bill of Lading) required for importation of the goods into the destination country.
The buyer needs to give the seller prompt notice of the name of the vessel,loading berth and delivery dates. In the event of the buyer failing to notify the seller of the name of the vessel, and the port of shipment within the prescribed period,the buyer would bear all the consequential cost and risk from the expiry date of the notification period.The buyer should also meet all costs of obtaining the export license or other governmental authorization necessary to export the goods.

Free On Board (FOB) (...named port of shipment)
FOB is widely used in internation trade.Uner this term,the seller delivers the good on the board of the ship named by the buyer at the specified port of thipment within the agreed period. The risk of the loss to or damage to the goods is transferred fromt the seller to the buyer when the goods pass over the ship's rail.The seller must supply the goods in accordance with the contract of sale,and provide at his expense any export license or other governmental authorization necessory for the export of goods. The seller should also provide the buyer on request and at buyer's expense with the certification of Origin,and offer any assistance to obtain Bills of Lading and other necessary documentation.
The buyer bears all cost and risk of the cargo fromt the time it has passed the ship's rail and pays the price as specified in the sales contract.The buyer also pays all cost to the seller to obtain Bills of Lading,Certificate of Origin and any other documentation required.This term can only be used for sea or inland waterway transportation.
As the loading of the goods is a continuous process,sometimes, it is hard to use ship's rail as a point to divide responsibilities and costs.To avoid any dispute,there are several derived terms:

*FOB Liner Terms
It means the ship wil be responsible for the loading and the seller doesn't have to pay loading expense.
*FOB Under Tackle
This term only requires the seller to send and place the goods on the wharf within the reack of the ship's tackle.Loading expenses incurred thereafter will be borne by the buyer.
*FOB Stowed
Under this term, the seller loads the goods into the ship's hold and pays the loading expense including stowing expense.
*FOB Trimmed
The seller pays all the loading expense including trimming expense (which actually also includes stowing expense).