Legal Definitions - coasting trade

Coasting trade, also known as coastwise trade, refers to commercial activities involving the transportation of goods or passengers by water exclusively within the borders of a single country.

This type of commerce typically takes place between different ports along a nation's coastline or on its navigable inland waterways, such as major rivers. It is distinct from international shipping, which involves trade between different countries.

• Example 1: A shipping company transports a large consignment of manufactured goods from a port in Baltimore, Maryland, to a port in Miami, Florida. The vessel travels along the Atlantic coast of the United States, never leaving U.S. territorial waters.

  Explanation: This scenario illustrates coasting trade because the movement of goods occurs entirely between two domestic ports within the same country (the United States), utilizing its coastline.

• Example 2: A barge company loads bulk agricultural products, such as corn, onto barges at a facility in Memphis, Tennessee, and transports them down the Mississippi River to a processing plant located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

  Explanation: This is an example of coasting trade because the transportation takes place solely on a navigable inland waterway (the Mississippi River) within the United States, connecting two domestic locations.

• Example 3: A ferry service operates daily routes carrying commuters and tourists between various islands that are part of the same state, such as between different Hawaiian islands or between islands off the coast of Maine.

  Explanation: This demonstrates coasting trade as it involves the commercial transportation of passengers within the domestic waters of a single country, connecting different points along its coast or within its internal waterways.