International shipments move by two primary modes: Sea and Air.

This is true globally — and for the China ↔ India route as well. Each mode has sub-options depending on your volume, urgency, and budget.

• Sea Freight → FCL (Full Container Load) and LCL (Less than Container Load).

• Air → Air cargo/freight (airport-to-airport) and Air courier (door-to-door express via FedEx/DHL/UPS).

(There are niche or hybrid options — express consolidation, rail on certain corridors, reefers for perishables — but broadly, international movement is handled through Sea or Air.)

Sea Cargo

When you’re planning to import from China (or any other country), one of the first things you need to decide is how your goods will be shipped. The choice between air and sea — and the sub-modes within each — will directly affect your cost, delivery time, and even the kind of products you can profitably import.

Sea Freight (the backbone of global trade)

Sea freight is the most common and economical method of shipping goods internationally. In fact, over 80% of global trade (by volume) moves by sea.

Main options under sea freight:

• FCL – Full Container Load
  You book an entire container for your goods.
• Container types: 20 ft, 40 ft, and 40 ft High Cube (HQ).
• Best suited for medium to large volumes where you can fill most of the container.
• Advantage: Cheaper per unit, secure, predictable.

LCL – Less than Container Load

• Your goods share container space with other importers.
• Ideal for smaller quantities that don’t justify a full container.
• Advantage: Flexible, affordable for smaller loads.
• Drawback: Slightly longer transit times due to consolidation.

Air Cargo (fast but limited)

Air freight is the choice when speed matters — but it comes at a much higher cost compared to sea.

Here’s the reality check:

By volume: Air cargo is tiny. Only about 0.6% of global trade by weight moves by air.
By value: That same 0.6% represents more than 30% of the world’s trade value, because air is used for high-value, lightweight, and time-critical goods.

Options under air cargo:

Air Freight (Airport-to-Airport)

• Goods shipped via cargo planes or passenger planes’ belly hold.
• Cheaper than courier for bulk air shipments.
• Requires customs clearance, local handling, and delivery arrangements at both ends.

Air Courier (Door-to-Door)

• Services like FedEx, DHL, UPS, Aramex,TNT etc
• Convenient, door-to-door delivery, often used for samples or small parcels.
• Cost is high, usually only viable for urgent or high-value, low-weight shipments.

🚚 When to Choose What?

• Sea FCL: Best for bulk orders, large volumes, or regular shipments.
• Sea LCL: Great for small importers testing products or consolidating modest quantities.
• Air Freight: Use for urgent replenishments, fragile items, or products where delivery speed outweighs freight cost.
• Air Courier: Perfect for product samples, small orders, or business documents.
  

📌 Why Daily Articles Rarely Go by Air

For everyday items like utensils, décor, or low-ticket consumer goods, the freight cost by air can be higher than the value of the product itself. For example:

• Shipping a parcel worth ₹1,00,000 might make sense via air freight.
• But sending 1,000 low-cost household items via air? The freight would crush your margins.
  

Instead, air is typically reserved for:

• High-value items (electronics, pharma, luxury goods).
• Perishables (fruits, vegetables, flowers) on long-haul routes.
• Urgent shipments with strict delivery timelines.