Sea freight shipping from China
It is the most frequently chosen option for importing commodities from China because of its low costs and ability to transport a lot of products. There is only one disadvantage that is expectance of delivery that could take up to 40 days.
Ports in China
China with its almost 14 500 km coastline has a lot of ports to choose from. The most popular are:
- Port of Shanghai. Shanghai Province (CN-SGH) the largest port in the world, annual container volume totals 43.3 million TEU
- Port of Shenzhen. Guangdong Province (CN-SNZ) this port is home to 39 shipping companies, annual container volume totals 27.7 million TEU
- Port of Ningbo-Zhoushan. Zhejiang Province (CN-NBO & CN-ZOS) annual container volume totals 26.4 million TEU
- Port of Guangzhou. Guangdong Province (CN-GGZ) annual container volume totals 21.9 million TEU
- Port of Hong Kong. Hong Kong – Special Administrative Region (HK-HKG) annual container volume totals19.6 million TEU
- Port of Qingdao. Shandong Province (CN-QIN) annual container volume totals 18.26 million TEU
- Port of Tianjin Municipality (CN-TXG/CN-TSN/CN-TNJ) annual container volume totals 15.97 million TEU
- Port of Dalian. Liaodong Province (CN-DAL) annual container volume totals 9.77 million TEU
- Port of Xiamen. Fujiang Province (CN-XAM) annual container volume totals 10.7 million TEU
- Port of Yingkou. Liaoning Province (CN-YIK) annual container volume totals 6.5 million TEU
Air freight from China
When there is little time or the imported commodity has a short best-before date it is reasonable to choose air freight. The cost will be higher than other means of transports but the delivery will take only up to a few days.
Railway freight from China
The biggest advantage of railway freight from China is that it is faster than a ship. The journey could take a maximum of up to over a dozen of days. It's more expensive than sea freight but still cheaper than air transportation.
Road transport from China
It is possible to transport commodities from China by road. Although there are a lot of kilometers between China and Europe this method is still worthwhile. Is a bit more expensive than ship freight but it is also faster. The package will be delivered after 13-17 days.
Cost of transport from China
The cost of transport from China depends on various factors. Nowadays it is important to keep in mind that there is a big problem, especially with sea and railway freight from China. There are a lot of shipping containers in Europe and the USA but just a few in China. This situation leads to big delays and rapid price changes. After all, the impact on the final cost will also have the size of the package, the city from which the commodity is transported, and the chosen Incoterms rule. A good practice is to estimate the price on Shiphub.co before starting the process of transportation.