1、,Offers & Counter-offers,Learning Objectives,the definition of an offer and counter-offer;the difference between firm offers and non-firm offers;the legal binding effect of a firm offer;how to structure a letter to make an offer and a counter-offer;how to use the common expressions in this type of l
2、etter.,Chapter,5,Chapter 5,Discuss the following questions,1) What is an offer? 2) What is a counter offer? 3) What is a firm offer? 4) What is a non-firm offer? 5) What is a quotation? 6) What are the differences between the above terms?,1,Starting up,Offer,An offer means submitting or furnishing d
3、etails including prices, conditions and other related items needed for a contract. Or, according to the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sales of Goods, “a proposal for concluding a contract addressed to one or more specific persons constitutes an offer if it is sufficien
4、tly definite and indicates the intention of the offeror to be bound in case of acceptance.“,Example: an offer/a reply to an enquiry,Dear Mr.Brown,In reply to your letter of May 15th, we take pleasure in making you a special offer, subject to our final confirmation, as follows:Art.No. 81000 Printed S
5、hirtingDesign No. 72435-2ASpecifications: 30x36x72x60 35/6”x42 ydsQuantity: 18 000 ydsPacking: In bales or in wooden cases, at sellers optionPrice: USD per yard CIF3 HamburgShipment: To be made in two equal monthly installments, beginning from October, 2009.Payment: By confirmed, irrevocable L/C pay
6、able by draft at sight to be opened 30 days before the time of shipment.We trust that the above offer will be acceptable to you and await with keen interest your first order. Yours sincerely, Wang Hao Sales Manager,Firm offer/ non-firm offer, period of validity; all terms and conditions complete, cl
7、ear and definite non-firm offers cannot be accepted, just an inducement to business, usually made by sending catalogues, pricelists, proforma invoice and quotations and so on.,Example: a firm offer,Dear Sir,Shaping MachinesWe were pleased to receive your enquiry of 12 July for our shaping machines.
8、As requested, we offer firm, subject to your reply reaching here by 22 July, as follows: Name of commodity: OX brand shaping machine SL-035 Quantity: 50 sets Unit price: USD 100 000 per set CIF Los Angeles Date of shipment: On or before October 15, 2009 Terms of payment: By confirmed, irrevocable L/
9、C payable by draft at sight Our shaping machines are reasonable in price and excellent in quality. All the machines can be guaranteed for one year, and we also provide spare parts and components and after-sale services to overseas customers.We hope this offer will turn out to your satisfaction and l
10、ook forward to receiving your initial order soon. Yours faithfully,Firm offer indicator,Example: a non-firm offer,Dear Sirs,We are in receipt of your letter of August 5, 2009, and we are willing to enter into direct business relations with you on the basis of equality and mutual benefit. As requeste
11、d, we are enclosing our latest illustrated catalogue and quotation sheet covering all our products available for export, subject to our final confirmation. Having specialized in spices business for about 20 years, we are well connected with leading suppliers in China and our commodities are very mar
12、ketable in America, Canada, Japan, Korea and most of the European countries.Now we are desirous of opening up the market in your country and are seeking an experienced agent in this field. If you are interested in any of our items, you may contact us directly. We can assure you of our most favorable
13、 prices and the finest quality.We are looking forward to your early reply. Yours faithfully,Non-firm offer indicator,Quotation,A promise to supply goods on the price and trade terms agreed upon by both parties.Note: price and trade terms only, without other terms or conditions.,Brain storm: a quotat
14、ion? an offer?,Express promise to sell Detailed elements: price, packing, shipment,payment terms, etc. Our price is FOB Shanghai $100 M/T, subject to your reply within one week. Please refer to the pricelist attached for our price. I might be prepared to sell my dog to you for $10. I offer you this
15、but I dont intend to be bound by anything if you accept.,Acceptance,a mirror model, which means, unconditional acceptance, without any discrepancies between what is offered and what is accepted, otherwise it is a counter offer. non material alterations are allowed nowadays by legal experts.,Counter
16、Offer,an alteration Partial rejection to the original offer Counter proposal Ends the original offer,Example: a counter-offer,Dear Sirs, Re: Cowhide BeltsWe have received your offer dated May 9 for the captioned goods.While we appreciate the fine quality of your products, we regret to inform you tha
17、t our clients find your price much too high. Reliable information indicates that some manufactures in China can supply the similar products and theirs prices are fairly reasonable and competitive as compared with yours. May we suggest that you make some allowance, say 10% on your quoted prices? We b
18、elieve your reduction in prices would help us to push sales of your belts in our market. We have been engaged in the leather products business for over 30 years and enjoy high prestige in this field. If you can grant us the discount, we trust this will be the beginning of our long and stable coopera
19、tion partnership. Wed highly appreciate your prompt reply.Yours faithfully,Writing a Quotation,An expression of thanks for the enquiry; Details of prices, discounts and terms of payment; A statement or clear indication of what the prices cover ( trade terms); An undertaking as to date of delivery or
20、 time of shipment; The period for which the quotation is valid, with an expression of hope that the quotation will be accepted.,Writing an Offer,An expression of thanks for the enquiry; Name of commodities, quality, quantity and specifications; Details of prices, discounts and terms of payment; A st
21、atement or clear indication of what the prices cover; Packing and date of delivery; The period for which the offer is valid.,Writing a Counter offer,Thank the seller for his offer. Express regret at inability to accept. State reasons for non-acceptance; Make a counter-offer, if appropriate, or sugge
22、st other opportunities to do business together.,Bargain,1.卖方不论利润高低，总是要坚称自己的报价利润很低，没利润，甚至低于成本(under the cost)。 2.买方的原则刚好相反，不论卖方价钱再低，总是还要嫌贵，或假称其它竞争者报价更低，或预算有限。 3.出了议价以外，买方也可能要求卖方在付款条件方面做让步，例如改用D/A等方式，或要求缩短交货期。,4.卖方在回复时，有四个选择 （1）不接受。原因例如： 品质较好，材料成本高， good quality, costly material 原料涨价， raw material cos
23、t has been raised 人工上涨， labor cost has been increased 货币升值， RMB appreciation/RMB has been appreciated 汇率浮动， fluctuation of the exchange rate 买方价格低于成本,（2）接受 无论价钱是否有很大利润，不要答应得太爽快。 （3）条件式接受 表示愿意接受对方的还价，但有条件，比如增加订购数量，或改变付款条件等 （4）折中还价 为表示诚意（to show our good faith)，只象征性降一点价，如 要求降10%，愿意接受3%,买方还价函的写法,主题：先感谢
24、卖方的报价及提供的相关信息，但很抱歉其价钱偏高，或比同行的报价高许多。说明：举出嫌贵的原因，例如经济不景气，市场竞争激烈，欲购买数量很大，预算有限等或直接告之目标价位。结论：请卖方在考虑是否接受买方开价，或重新报较好的价格条件。,卖方回复还价函的写法,主题：先表示很遗憾或很抱歉听到买方不满意自己的价钱，或认为自己的价钱偏高 说明： （1）先表示自己已报最好的价钱，此报价几乎已无利润 （2）在表示自己经过仔细考虑后，愿意特别接受/无法接受/条件式接受/折中还价，原因及条件。 结论： （1）如接受，请买方尽快确认定单 （2）如不接受，向其道歉，并表示下次有机会能再合作。 （3）如条件式接受或折中还
25、价，请其考虑，尽快告之意见。,Expressions: making an offer,(1) We take pleasure in making you an offer for our goods. (2) Our offer is CIF New York with a commission of five percent for you. (3) We usually quote on CIF/C&F/FOB basis. (4) We usually quote on the basis of CIF terms without commission. (5) All the pr
26、ices on the list are firm offers. (6) In reply, we are sending you a firm offer, subject to your reply reaching us before February 26. (7) As requested, we take pleasure in offering you 300 dozen deerskin handbags. (8) This is our offer for 10 000 pieces of table cloth at US$ CIF New York. (9) We ar
27、e prepared to offer 100 metric tons of groundnuts at the market price for immediate shipment. (10) We now offer l00 metric tons of bitter apricot kernels at US$ 1000 M/T CIF London.,Expressions: validity of an offer,(1) These quotations will remain valid until further notice. (2) We offer firm the f
28、ollowing product subject to your acceptance within 5 days. (3) This price is subject to change without notice. (4) The offer is subject to withdrawal without notice. (5) The offer is without engagement. (6) The offer is subject to prior sale. (7) The offer is subject to the goods being unsold. (8) T
29、he prices are subject to our final confirmation. (9) Our offer is valid/good/available/open/firm/effective for 3days.,Expressions: disagreement to an offer,(1) Our marketing research reveals that the prices you quoted appear to be on the high side even for tools of your quality. (2) We do not deny t
30、hat the quality of your TV sets is slightly better than that of other brands, but the difference in price should, in no case, be so big. (3) With your price Im afraid youll stand very little chance of obtaining the business. (4) While appreciating the good quality of your goods, we find your price i
31、s rather too high to be acceptable. (5) Much as we would like to cooperate with you in expanding sales, we very much regret that we just cannot see our way clear to entertain your counter-offer. (6) The packing mentioned in your offer is of the old mode we accepted in our last order. (7) After caref
32、ul consideration, we decide to accept all your terms and conditions except packing/ payment /shipment. (8) While we find both the prices and quality satisfactory, we cannot comply with your payment terms.,Expressions: persuasion,(1) We also point out that very good quality Canned Mushrooms is availa
33、ble in our market from several European manufacturers and their prices are about 5%-10% lower than yours. (2) After you have examined them you can know the goods are both excellent in quality and very reasonable in price. (3) In order to promote our business, please accept the above terms. (4) We ar
34、e considering placing even larger orders if you can grant us 10% discount. (5) In view of our long term business relations, we suggest you accept our counter-offer. (6) Please kindly trust us that our price is quite realistic. In fact, we have received lots of orders from various sources at our leve
35、l.,Expressions: new proposal,(1) To have this business concluded, Im afraid you need to lower your price at least by 10 percent. (2) We have to ask you to consider if you can make a reduction in your price about 5%. (3) May we suggest that you perhaps make some allowance, say, two percent off your q
36、uoted prices? (4) On outer packing please mark our initial CAB, under which our order number and port of destination should be stenciled. (5) As our clients urgently need the goods, may we request you to shift your delivery time from “in May” to “in March”? (6) As per our usual practice, we prefer t
37、o receive quotations on CIF basis. (7) We are prepared to accept your offer provided that you can meet our usual requirement on packing/ payment /shipment as given below.,Excersises,Practice makes perfect,1 Fill in the blanks with the words and phrases given in the box. Change the forms where necess
38、ary.,competitive examine reduce essential to in response to assure effect call off marketable desirous of submit handling guarantee as per compared with supposing owing to run low turn out without any delay,Exercises,(1) We are looking forward to your early reply and you may _ that it will receive o
39、ur prompt attention. (2) Should your products prove satisfactory and price be found _, you may expect substantial orders from us. (3) Ill respond to your counter-offer by _our price by three dollars. (4) In reply, we have the pleasure of _to you firm offer on the following terms and conditions subje
40、ct to your reply here by October 21, 2009. (5) After you _the samples you can know the goods are not only excellent in quality but also very reasonable in price. (6) The packing should be suitable for a long voyage and well protect the goods from dampness, shock and rough _. (7) When we offered the
41、seafood, it was stated that shipment would _in August. (8) Optimism is _ achievement and it is also the foundation of courage and true progress. (9) We have to _ the deal if you cant reduce the price. (10) As exporters, we always see to it that our customers _ economical and seaworthy packing.,be as
42、sured,competitive,reducing,submitting,have examined,handling,be effected,essential to,call off,are guaranteed,(11) If this initial order _ satisfactory, we shall be able to place a large order with you in the future. (12) Please let us have your specific enquiry if you find any item in our catalogue
43、 _ in your market. (13) Any party _ resolving its commercial disputes expeditiously and economically may use this service. (14) We have sent you samples and illustrated catalogue by airmail _ your enquiry of September 20. (15) Owing to the increasing demand for this type of our products, our stocks
44、_. (16) Imports in the first three months have increased by 10 per cent _ the corresponding period last year. (17) _ you can promise prompt delivery, we may place bulk orders with you. (18) Our trading connection has broken off _ a disagreement over prices. (19) As our stocks are getting low, you ar
45、e kindly requested to forward the ordered goods _. (20) _ your suggestions in your letter of May 18, our manufacturer has made some improvements in the packing of auto spare parts.,turns out,marketable,desirous of,as per,run low,compared with,Supposing,owing to,without any delay,In response to,2.Tra
46、nslate the following sentences into English,1）我方的报价是合理的、现实的，符合当前市场的价格水平。 (1) Our offer is reasonable and realistic. It comes in line with the prevailing market.2）兹报实盘，以自本日起一周之内你方回复到达我方为准。 (2) We offer you firm subject to your reply reaching us within one week from today.(3) 由于我方这些产品的存货有限，请立即订货，切勿拖延。
47、 (3) As our stocks of these goods are limited, we would advise you to place your order without delay.(4)假若贵方能将价格降至与你们的竞争对手类似的价格，我们将下大定单。 (4) We could place large orders if you could reduce your price to a level comparable with that of your competitors in this market.,5) 这里所报价格是成本加运费含3%佣金纽约价。 (5) The
48、 price quoted here is based on C otherwise, we shall dispose of the goods elsewhere.7) 在对情况进一步考虑后，如贵方感到不能接受我方报价，我方希望这不影响我们今后在其他方面的合作。 (7) If you still feel you cannot accept our offer after a further thought of the matter, we do hope it wont prevent you from cooperating with us on some other occasio
49、ns.8）如果你方坚持自己的价格，不作让步，我们没有必要再谈下去了。 (8) If you insist on your price and refuse to make any concession, there will be not much point in further discussion.,3.Translate the letter,敬启者：贵方报盘和目前可供出口产品的目录均已收悉，谢谢。此复，我们非常遗憾我方客户发现贵方报价太高与现行市场价格水平不相一致。有消息表明，其他公司以比贵方低得多的价钱销售同样的货物。这样一来，我们不可能说服我方客户接受贵方的价格，因为类似质量的产品很容易以低得多的价格从市场获得。如果贵方能减价，比方说8%，我们也许会达成交易。鉴于我们之间长期的业务关系，我方给贵方特惠还盘，并请尽早传真接受。盼早日回复 谨上,
