CONTRACTS·June 2026
Subject to: How to Shake Hands and Still Have No Deal
Subject to contract, approval or details may leave a trade as a conditional intention rather than a binding contract. Why “done” in a chat does not always mean a deal.
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CONTRACTS·June 2026
Anticipatory Breach: When the Warning Signs Are Not Yet a Default
English law can recognise a breach before the performance date. But if you treat commercial noise as a clear refusal and stop your own performance too early, the default may become yours.
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CONTRACTS·May 2026
Before Signing a Contract: 7 Questions Experienced Traders Ask
Seven questions to ask before signing a grain contract: goods, quality, weight, timing, standard forms, laytime, documents and arbitration.
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CONTRACTS·May 2026
Washout: What It Is and What It Does Not Do
In GAFTA trade, a washout is not a unilateral cancellation of the contract. It is a separate agreement to close the position by monetary settlement.
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CONTRACTS·May 2026
Doors closing. Next station — IMPORT BAN
Could Turkey close wheat imports in summer 2026 — and why such a move does not become automatic force majeure for the buyer under English law and the GAFTA form.
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QUALITY·May 2026
Mycotoxins in Grain: Rejection at the Discharge Port and Who Pays
DON, aflatoxin, ochratoxin - three common reasons for cargo rejection at Alexandria, Bandar Abbas and Istanbul. What the contract says, what GAFTA 124 says, and where the money is usually lost.
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CONTRACTS·May 2026
When a WhatsApp Message Becomes Acceptance
WhatsApp, Telegram and emoji can have contractual effect when the context shows agreement. Courts look at substance, not at whether the channel feels informal.
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FREIGHT·May 2026
Demurrage and Dispatch: The Difference and Who Pays Whom
Demurrage runs against the charterer; dispatch runs against the shipowner. Same clock, opposite directions - and the calculation lives in the charter party, not in market convention.
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FREIGHT·May 2026
Laytime in Plain English: SHEX, FHEX, WWD
Three abbreviations in a charter party that decide who owes whom. SHEX, FHEX, and WWD are the calculator that converts time at port into money - and ignoring them is how demurrage bills become surprises.
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