A: Now we have settled the terms of payment. Is it possible to effect shipment during September? 现在我们已经谈妥了付款条件，你方是否能够在九月份装船 ?
B: I don ' t think we can. 我看不行。
A: Then when is the earliest we can expect shipment? 那么最早什么时候可以装船呢 ?
B: By the middle of October, I think. 恐怕要在十月中旬。
A: That ' s too late. You see, November is the season for this commodity in our market, and our Customs formalities are rather compli- cated. 那太迟了。你知道，在我方市场上，十一月份是这种商品的上市季节，而我们的海关手续又相当复杂。
B: I understand. 我明白。
A: Besides, the flow through the marketing channels and the red tape involved take at least a couple of weeks. Thus, after ship- ment it will be four to five weeks altogether before the goods can reach our retailers. The goods must therefore be shipped
before October;otherwise we won ' t be in time for the selling season. 另外，通过销售渠道以及繁琐的公文程序，起码要花上几个星 期。这样从装船后到我们的零售商收到货物，总共要用四、五个星期。因此，十月份前货物必须装船，否则我们就赶不上销售季节了。
