Blog
Practical insights on doing business in China — sourcing, inspection, and local support.
"迁出" (Relocated) on a Supplier's Registry: What It Actually Means and What to Check Next
Seeing 迁出 (relocated) on a supplier's official registry status can look alarming next to other warning statuses like cancelled or revoked. It's a different category entirely — a legitimate administrative status that simply means the company moved to a new registered jurisdiction. The real issue isn't the status itself, it's confirming the new location is genuine.
No Photos Allowed at the Factory: How an Inspection Still Documents Findings
Buyers who assume a factory inspection automatically means a phone full of photos are working from an assumption that doesn't hold at a meaningful number of Chinese production facilities — many factories prohibit photography, video, and even visible phones on the floor entirely, for reasons that have nothing to do with hiding anything from the visitor.
Last-Minute Meeting Changes in China: Why a Solo Traveler Struggles and Local Coordination Doesn't
A supplier meeting moved up by a day, a factory visit pushed back three hours, a contact suddenly unavailable — last-minute changes are a normal, accepted part of doing business in China, not a sign anything has gone wrong. The problem isn't that changes happen. It's that a traveler managing their own itinerary alone often has no way to absorb one without the rest of the trip falling apart.
Multi-Person Delegation Trips to China: Why Group Logistics Need a Different Plan Than a Solo Trip
Planning a business trip to China for a team of five, ten, or more people isn't the same problem as planning a solo trip at a larger scale — it introduces failure points that only show up with multiple people moving together. A poorly structured delegation lets one person's delay stall the entire group. Here's how to structure the logistics so that doesn't happen.
FOB vs FCA for China Container Shipments: Why the Wrong Term Creates a Real Risk Gap
FOB appears on the overwhelming majority of China supplier quotes, largely out of habit rather than accuracy — because most shipments today are containerized cargo handed over at an inland depot, not bulk goods loaded directly onto a vessel. Using FOB for this kind of shipment creates a specific, avoidable gap in exactly when risk transfers to the buyer.
Chinese Supplier Court Records: Why One Lawsuit Isn't the Same as a Red Flag
A single lawsuit showing up in a Chinese supplier's court records tends to alarm buyers who find it, and that reaction usually isn't warranted. A lawsuit count is not a supplier risk score — what actually matters is the type of case, whether it escalated to enforcement, and whether it's a pattern or an isolated incident.
China's Tax Credit Rating System: The Verification Step Most Buyers Skip
Business registration checks, factory visits, and sample inspections are the standard supplier verification steps most buyers already know. A separate, official data point — China's A-D tax credit rating system — gets checked far less often, despite being a direct, government-assigned measure of a company's ongoing compliance behavior.
When the Payment Beneficiary Doesn't Match Your China Contract, What Actually Confirms It's Safe
A payment instruction naming a different beneficiary than the company on your contract is more common than most buyers expect, and it isn't automatically a scam — a trading company, an affiliate, or a payment platform can all have a legitimate role. The mistake is transferring funds because a sales contact says it's normal, without documenting who that beneficiary actually is first.
Why You Should Ask Your Supplier for a Copy of the Export Declaration
Commercial invoices and packing lists are easy for a supplier to produce however they'd like. A copy of the actual export declaration filed with Chinese customs is different — it tells you which legal entity really exported, what value was actually declared, and what HS code was really used. Almost no buyer thinks to ask for it.
Hidden Costs of Exhibiting at Chinese Trade Shows: The Designated Supplier Problem
Foreign exhibitors setting up a booth at a Chinese trade show frequently discover a specific, unwelcome surprise once the invoices arrive: basic utilities like water, electricity, and internet are controlled by venue-designated suppliers, priced well above market rate, with no alternative vendor option. Here's what this actually costs and how to budget for it properly.