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Miscellaneous

Import Export Definitions


Freight Forwarder

An independent business that handles export shipments for compensation. The freight forwarder is among the best sources of information and assistance on the U.S. export regulations and documentation, shipping methods, and foreign import regulations.

Gateway

In the context of travel activities, gateway refers to a major airport or seaport. Internationally, gateway can also mean the port where customs clearance takes place.

GATT Panel

A panel of neutral representatives that may be established by the GATT Secretariat under the dispute settlement provisions of the GATT to review the facts of a dispute and render findings of GATT law and recommend action.

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)

A multilateral treaty whose purpose is to help reduce trade barrier between the signatory countries and to promote trade through tariff concessions.

General Exception

CoCom controls exports at three levels, depending on the item and the proposed destination. At the highest or “general exception” level, unanimous approval by CoCom members is necessary.

General Export License

Any of various export licenses covering export commodities for which Validated Export Licenses are not required. No formal application or written authorization is needed to ship exports under a General Export License.

General Imports

“General Imports” measure the total physical arrival of merchandise from foreign countries, whether such merchandise enters consumption channels immediately or is entered into bonded warehouses or Foreign Trade Zones under Customs custody.

Generalized System of Preferences (GSP)

The Generalized System of Preferences, GSP, is a framework under which developed countries give preferential tariff treatment to manufactured goods imported from certain developing countries. GSP is one element of a coordinated effort by the industrial trading nations to bring developing countries more fully into the international trading system. The U.S. GSP scheme is a system of non-reciprocal tariff preference for the benefit of these countries. The U.S. conducts annual GSP reviews to consider petitions requesting modification of product coverage and/or country eligibility. United States GSP law requires that a beneficiary country’s laws and practices relating to market access, intellectual property rights protection, investment, export practices, and workers rights be considered in all GSP decisions.

General Tariff

A tariff that applies to countries that do not enjoy either preferential or most-favored-nation tariff treatment. Where the general tariff rate differs from the most-favored-nation rate, the general tariff rate is usually the higher rate.

Global Export Manager

The Global Export Manager, GEM, is an electronic system for collecting and disseminating trade leads and business opportunities. GEM is maintained by the National Association of State Development Agencies (NASDA).

Global Quota

A global quota is a quota on the total imports of a product from all countries.

Gold Key Service

The Gold Key Service is an International Trade Administration service that provides customized information for U.S. firms visiting a country – market orientation briefings, market research, introductions to potential business partners, an interpreter for meetings, assistance in developing a market strategy, and help in putting together a follow-up plan. Trade Specialists design an agenda of meetings, screen and select the right companies, arrange meetings with key people, and go with U.S. representatives to ensure that no unfortunate difficulties occur.

Government Procurement Policies and Practices

The term refers to a non-tariff barrier to trade involving the discriminatory purchase by official government agencies of goods and services from domestic suppliers, despite their higher prices or inferior quality as compared with competitive goods that could be imported.

Grandfather Clause

The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) provision that allows the original contracting parties to exempt from general GATT obligations mandatory domestic legislation which is inconsistent with GATT provisions, but which existed before the GATT was signed. Newer members may also “grandfather” domestic legislation if that is agreed to in negotiating the terms of accession. (U.S. legislation also provides for “grandfather clauses.”)

Green Line. See: China Green Line

Grey List

This is a list of disreputable end users in nations of concern for missile proliferation from the intelligence community. Licensing officials in Commerce and State use this list as a cross- reference when reviewing export license applications for commodities listed in the MTCR Equipment and Technology Annex.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

A measure of the market value of all goods and services produced within the boundaries of a nation, regardless of asset ownership. Unlike gross national product, GDP excludes receipts from that nation’s business operations in foreign countries, as well as the share of reinvested earning in foreign affiliates of domestic corporations.

Gross National Product

A measure of the market value of goods and services produced by the labor and property of a nation. Includes receipts from that nation’s business operation in foreign countries, as well as the share of reinvested earnings in foreign affiliates of domestic corporations.

Gross Weight

The full weight of a shipment, including goods and packaging. Compare: Tare Weight.

Group of

Five Similar to the Group of Seven (G-7), with the exception of Canada and Italy. Seven This term refers to seven major economic powers (Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, and the United States) whose finance ministers seek to promote balanced economic growth and stability among exchange rates. Ten Under the International Monetary Fund’s General Agreements to Borrow (GAB), established in 1962, 10 of the wealthiest industrial members of the 1MF “stand ready to lend their currencies to the IMF up to specified amounts when supplementary resources are needed.” The finance ministers of these countries comprise the Group of 10 (also called the Paris Club). Fifteen The G-l5, established in 1990, consists of relatively prosperous or large developing countries. The G-l5 discusses the benefits of mutual cooperation in improving their international economic positions. Members include: Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, Peru, Senegal, Venezuela, Yugoslavia, and Zimbabwe. Twenty-four A grouping of finance ministers from 24 developing country members of the International Monetary fund. The Group, representing eight countries from each of the African, Asian, and Latin American country groupings in the Group of 77, was formed in 1971 to counterbalance the influence of the Group of 10. Seventy-Seven A grouping of developing countries which had its origins in the early 1 960s. The numerical designation persists, although membership had increased to more than 120 countries. The G-77 functions as a caucus for the developing countries on economic matters in many forums including the United Nations.

Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)

The six member countries (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, and Oman) of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) control half the proven oil reserves outside the Soviet Union, and account for 40 percent of all the oil moving in international trade. The GCC was created in 1981, largely in response to the outbreak of the Iraq-Iran war. In creating the GCC, the members tried to maintain the balance of power in the Gulf by strengthening multilateral cooperation in security and economic matters. In regard to trade, the GCC is only a policy-coordinating forum; the Council cannot impose policies on members. GCC headquarters are in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The presidency of the GCC rotates yearly among the rulers of the member countries.

Harmonized System

The Harmonized Commodity Descriptions and Coding System (or Harmonized System, HS) is a system for classifying goods in international trade, developed under the auspices of the Customs Cooperation Council. Beginning on January 1, 1989, the new HS numbers replaced previously adhered-to schedules in over 50 countries, including the United States. For the United States, the HS numbers are the numbers that are entered on the actual export and import documents. Any other commodity code classification number (SIC, SITC, end-use, etc.) are just rearrangements and transformations of the original HS numbers.

Horizontal Export Trading Company

An export trading company that exports a range of similar or identical products supplied by a number of manufacturers or other producers. Webb-Pomerene Organizations, trade-grouped organized export trading companies, and an export trading company formed by an association of agricultural cooperatives are the prime examples of horizontally organized export trading companies.

Import Certificate

The import certificate is a means by which the government of the country of ultimate destination exercises legal control over the internal channeling of the commodities covered by the import certificate.

Import License

A document required and issued by some national governments authorizing the importation of goods.

Import Quota

A means of restricting imports by the issuance of licenses to importers, assigning each a quota, after determination of the total amount of any commodity which is to be imported during a period. Import licenses may also specify the country from which the importer must purchase the goods.

Import Quota Auctioning

The process of auctioning the right to import specified quantities of quota-restricted goods.

Import Restrictions

Import restriction, applied by a country with an adverse trade balance (or for other reasons), reflect a desire to control the volume of goods coming into the country from other countries. It may include the imposition of tariffs or import quotas, restrictions on the amount of foreign currency available to cover imports, a requirement for import deposits, the imposition of import surcharges, or the prohibition of various categories of imports.

Import Substitution

A strategy that emphasizes the replacement of imports with domestically produced goods, rather than the production of goods for exports, to encourage the development of domestic industry.

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