About Bills of Lading
Understanding the foundation of U.S. import data and trade records.
What is a Bill of Lading?
A Bill of Lading (BOL) is a legal document that serves as a receipt for goods shipped, a contract between the shipper and carrier, and a document of title. In the context of U.S. maritime imports, Bills of Lading are required documents that accompany every container or shipment entering the United States through its ports.
These documents are collected by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and contain detailed information about each shipment, including the origin, destination, contents, value, and parties involved in the transaction.
What Information is Included?
- • Shipper Information: Name and address of the exporter
- • Consignee Information: Name and address of the importer/receiver
- • Product Description: Detailed description of the goods
- • HS Code: Harmonized System code for product classification
- • Origin Country: Country where goods were manufactured
- • Ports: Loading port and unloading port
- • Dates: Shipping date and arrival date
- • Value: CIF (Cost, Insurance, Freight) value of the shipment
Research Applications
Bills of Lading data provides researchers with unparalleled insights into global trade patterns. This granular, transaction-level data enables:
- • Supply Chain Analysis: Track the complete journey of goods from origin to final destination
- • Trade Flow Analysis: Understand import volumes, trends, and patterns over time
- • Economic Impact Studies: Analyze the economic effects of trade policies, tariffs, and market changes
- • Regional Analysis: Examine trade patterns at the state, city, or even zip code level
- • Industry Research: Study specific industries, products, or commodity categories
Data Quality and Considerations
While Bills of Lading provide comprehensive trade data, researchers should be aware that:
- • Data is collected from shipping manifests, which may contain inconsistencies or missing information
- • Some fields may require data cleaning and validation for precise analysis
- • Aggregate-level data is generally more reliable than individual record-level analysis
- • For detailed research, data preprocessing and validation are recommended
Explore Bills of Lading Data
Ready to analyze U.S. import data? Start exploring our comprehensive Bills of Lading datasets.
Complete Bill of Lading Example
BILL OF LADING
OCEAN BILL OF LADING
Shipper:
YIWU GUIQING TRADE CO LTD
SL-01623 RM 2301 BLDG 3 ZHONGFU BUILDING FUTIASTREET YIWU CHINA Y IWU CN
Consignee:
ZYPHORA CREST INC
127-02 HARRY DOUGLASS WY JAMAICA NEW YORK 11434 US
Notify Party:
Vessel:
COSCO SHIPPING ORCHID
Code: 9785770
Carrier:
NXHS
Manifest No:
000001
Loading Port:
57020, NINGPO
Unloading Port:
4601, NEW YORK/NEWARK AREA, NEWARK, NJ
Place of Receipt:
NINGBO
Country:
CN, CHINA
Mode of Transport:
11
Est. Arrival:
2026-07-23
Actual Arrival:
2026-07-30
Bill of Lading No:
NXHSNBXH26060233
Master Bill of Lading:
EGLV143653878339
Container ID:
EITU8121661
Container Size:
4000*906*802
Container Type:
4EB0
Load Status:
L
PRODUCT INFORMATION
Product Description:
WINDOW CURTAINS BATH TUB CUTING MAT
HS Code:
630391
Marks & Numbers:
NO MARKS
Weight (KG):
18518
Weight:
18518 KG
Quantity:
800 PKG
TEU:
2
CIF:
0
Container Desc Code:
CN
Container Type of Service:
CY