Title: Incoterms: strategic use and issues in effecting trade

Authors: John Vogt; Jonathan Davis

Addresses: Marilyn Davies College of Business, University of Houston Downtown, 320 N Main Street, Houston, TX, 77002, USA ' Marilyn Davies College of Business, University of Houston-Downtown, 320 N Main Street, Houston, TX, 77002, USA

Abstract: The most efficient and effective trade and transfer of goods between buyer and seller requires that the appropriate Incoterms^® rule be chosen for the trade. A strategically chosen Incoterms^® rule will help organisations to minimise risk, cost, and time in the logistics delivery of the goods. For the choice of Incoterms^® rules to be strategic, they need to be chosen so that the most appropriate logistics service provider is utilised, from either the buyer or seller, for each segment of movement. This research focuses on whether the Incoterms® rules are chosen strategically to optimise the capabilities of the buyer and seller in trade today. The results show that many Incoterms^® rule selections do not align with a true strategic focus, but that there is a measure of selection to support the expert's company.

Keywords: incoterms^®; logistics; economics; globalisation; movement; buyer-seller relationship.

DOI: 10.1504/IJLEG.2026.154428

International Journal of Logistics Economics and Globalisation, 2026 Vol.11 No.3, pp.197 - 217

Received: 26 Dec 2023
Accepted: 07 Apr 2024
Published online: 29 Jun 2026 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article