What do EXW, FOB, and CIF mean for China sourcing?
Incoterms define who pays freight and bears risk—EXW puts maximum responsibility on the buyer, FOB at the Chinese port, and CIF includes carriage and insurance to a named port.
EXW, FOB, and CIF are Incoterms that allocate cost and risk between buyer and seller when sourcing from China.
• EXW — You arrange pickup from the factory; maximum buyer control, maximum buyer responsibility. • FOB — Seller delivers on board at the Chinese port; you control main carriage and insurance choices. • CIF — Seller pays carriage and insurance to a named destination port; useful when you want a simpler buy price, but still plan destination charges, clearance, and inland delivery.
For Uganda importers, FOB + a trusted forwarder (like AMG) often balances transparency and control. CIF can hide weak insurance or routing choices inside a single supplier price.
Write the Incoterm and named place clearly on the PO and commercial invoice. Ambiguous terms are a top cause of "who pays this fee?" disputes mid-shipment.