商务谈判之交货和索赔

Business Negotiation Background Information
Dafa Garments Co.---a garments making firm in China Mr. Kang Li, marketing manager
Mr. Zhonghua Yang, assistant manager of Mr. Li Wilshire Fashion, Inc.---a Los Angeles based American firm Mr. Richard Bowen, purchasing manager
Miss Diana Cade, his secretary
Mr. Guy Dewey, assistant manager.
Delivery & Claim
Focus: Delivery
Quality control
Penalty
Terms of International Business
商品检验（Commodity Inspection）
由官方的商检机构（或经官方注册的、以第三者份运作的独立鉴定机构）对进出口货物的规格、数量、质量、安全、检疫、包装等进行检验，并签发证书。

商检是国际贸易的重要环节，它体现了国家进出口货物的品质管制。

商检机构出具的有关证书是海关查验的重要依据，在买卖双方交接货物、结算货款和索赔理赔等环节中也起着重要作用。

索赔（Claim）
索赔是指交易中有一方未能履行合同所规定的责任和义务给另一方造成损害，受害方向违约方提出赔偿要求。

卖方违约的行为有：不交货，或不按合同规定的期限交货，或所交货物的规格、数量、质量、包装等与合同规定不符，或所提供的货单种类不齐、份数不足等。

买方违约的行为有：使用信用证作为支付手段但不按期开证或不开证，不按合同规定付款赎单，无理拒收货物等；在FOB条件下，不按合同规定如期派船接货等。

索赔条款是合同的重要部分，应规定索赔的依据和期限、处理索赔的方法和索赔金额。

不可抗力（Force Majeure）
当事人不能预见又无法采取措施预防的事故，发生后使得当事人不能履行或不能如期履行合同。

此时可按合同中不可抗力条款免除当事人责任。

不可抗力可以是自然现象（Acts of God），如火灾、水灾、地震、灾难性天气等，也可以是人的行为，如罢工、战争、政府禁令等。

在国际贸易合同中订入不可抗力条款至关重要，其内容应包括不可抗力的明确定义、事故发生后通知方的方式，如期限、事故的证明文件及出具证明的机构、事故后果的处理方法（如解除合同或展延合同的履行期限等）。

仲裁（Arbitration）
合同双方在合同执行过程中发生争议，不能自行和解，也不愿通过讼方式解决，可采取仲裁方式解决。

如双方同意，可在争议发生前在合同中加进仲裁条款（arbitration clause），也可在争议发生后达成协
议将争议提交仲裁（submission）。

仲裁条款和协议应包括以下内容：仲裁地点（力争在本国或第三国）、仲裁机构（我国的常设仲裁机构为中国国际经济贸易仲裁委员会和海事仲裁委员会）、仲裁程序、仲裁效力（一般是终局性的，双方都有约束力并不得向法院起诉要求变更裁决）、仲裁费用的负担（一般由败诉方负担）和仲裁条款的格式。

Offer:
--- We are pleased to offer you 120,000 cotton poplin blouses at US$ 16.80 each, FOB Xingang. The blouses will be packed in plastic bags, each four dozens in a corrugated cardboard box. They will be delivered in two consignments of 60,000 each, the first by August 20 and the second by September 10. The terms of payment will be the same as those in the previous contract, that is, sight letter of credit.
Section 1 Reason for early delivery
delivery 交货
claim 索赔
bounce （支票）被退回
---I can’t give you a check which I know will bounce.
reverse timetable 倒数时间表
retailer 零售商
clear the customs 清关，过海关
---Look at this reverse timetable. The goods must clear the Customs before September 20 if they are to reach our retailers by October.
outrageously 令人发疯地，令人无法容忍地
time-consuming 费时的
---The procedures the imported textiles have to go through can be outrageously time-consuming.
picky 挑剔的---be picky on sth
---The Customs has in the past few months become very picky on imported textiles. It takes ten days on average.
Section 2 Problem for early delivery & early order
The near the season draws 季节越是临近…
---In order to make a better prediction as to which design will win us customers, we have to wait until just two or three months before the season. The nearer the season draws, the better we can predict.
---that is why garment makers are now competing not only in quality and price, but also in speed of delivery. The sooner you can make the delivery, the more orders you will have.
work at full capacity 满负荷工作
---I’d like to make early delivery, but my factories are already working at full capacity.
---Can you rearrange your schedule and make my order your top priority?
Section 3 Necessity of claim clause
sound 稳健的，稳妥的
---Why do you still want this claim clause?
---Just a sound business practice.
quartz watch 石英表
camcorder 摄录像机
warranty保修单
---I’m a great believer in Japanese consumer electronics. I’ve bought a Japanese quartz watch, a Japanese color TV set and a Japanese camcorder, and none of them has given me any trouble. Now suppose I want to buy a Japanese digital camera. Do I still need a warranty?
virtually nil 实质上等于零
integrity 原则性，正直
beyond expectation 出乎意料
---I want to be one hundred percent sure that the machine will not go wrong even if the chance is virtually nil. This is also true for this contract. Being business partners for so long, we know each other’s integrity perfectly well. But there are factors which might beyond our expectation or control. So, neither of us should take chances.
go about 做，干
inferior quality 质量差
late delivery 交货误期
at a discount 削价
unsalable 无法出售的
---How would you like to go about it?
---I think there are two problems that may cause claims: inferior quality and late delivery. Inferior quality will force the garments to sell at a discount or to become completely unsalable. On the other hand, late delivery will also cause problems, because once you miss the season, you’ll miss the profits as well. Section 4 Purpose for asking claim clause
inconsistent 不稳定的，前后不一致的
complaint 抱怨
buttonholing 锁扣眼
stitch 针脚
unavoidable 不可避免的
mass production 大规模生产
---We’ve received some complaints from our retailers about the buttonholing of some of the shirts in your last consignment. They said the stitches are either too thick or too thin.
---I’m afraid that kind of problem is unavoidable in mass production.
invoke 行使，实行
lodge a claim with 向…索赔
step into my shoes 体验一下我的处境，将心比心
---I hope I’ll never have to invoke this clause and lodge a claim with you. I just want you to step into my shoes and feel my pressure.
Section 5 Defining defects
defect毛疵，次品
penalty rate 赔偿率，罚款率
unevenly-stitched 针脚不匀的
stain 污痕
trimmings 服装的辅料
labeling 贴标签
---Any defect: unevenly-stitched buttonholing, stains on the blouses, improper hemming, missing trimmings, wrong labeling, etc.
fall into 分为
categorize 分类
render使变为
categorization 分类法
---how would you categorize the defects?
---The first type is major defects, such as missing trimmings and stains on the blouses, which may render the garments unsuitable for sale. The second type is minor defects, such as uneven stitches and improper hemming, which will not make the garments unsalable.
Section 6 Penalty rate
flat rate 固定不变的（收费，罚款）率
---I suggest we use a flat rate for the penalty. That is, for each defective blouse, the penalty will be the value of the blouse.
progressive 累进的
---I hope there will be no defect or as few defects as possible so that we’ll never have to lodge a claim with you. In this spirit, I suggest we adopt a progressive penalty rate.
spell it out 讲出具体细节，讲清楚
inclusive 包含的，算在内的
the whole lot 整批货物
---Can you spell it out?
---For major defects, if the defect rate does not exceed 0.1%, the penalty rate will be 0.05% of the contract value. From 0.1% to 0.5% inclusive, the penalty rate will be 1%. From 0.5% to 1% inclusive, the penalty rate will be 30%. From 1% to 5% inclusive, the penalty rate will be 70%. The penalty rate will be 200% and the whole lot will be returned to you if the defect rate exceeds 5%.
more to my advantage 对我更有利
---I think the progressive rate is actually more to my advantage, because I have confidence in my products.。