Seller

In foreign trade terminology, 'Seller' refers to the party in an international contract for the sale of goods that provides goods or services and receives payment, often also called the exporter or supplier. Its core obligations include delivering the goods in accordance with the contract's quality, quantity, packaging, and time, and handling export customs clearance (unless using terms like EXW where the buyer is responsible for export clearance). It is commonly used in the 'Seller' field of documents such as proforma invoices, sales contracts, letters of credit, and bills of lading. Note: The seller must clarify its obligations under Incoterms 2020, e.g., under FOB it must load the goods on board and bear pre-loading costs; under CIF it is also responsible for transport and insurance. It should also pay attention to payment risks associated with payment methods (e.g., T/T, L/C) and the rules on transfer of ownership and risk in different jurisdictions. Often interchangeable with 'vendor', but 'seller' emphasizes the commercial role while 'vendor' emphasizes the legal contractual party; compared to 'supplier', a seller does not necessarily produce the goods and may be a trader.