In the international freight market, the freight forwarding industry is between the owner and the carrier. It accepts the entrustment of the cargo owner to do the chartering, booking, stowage, making relevant documents, customs declaration, inspection, insurance, container transportation, unpacking and disassembling, issuing bill of lading, settling freight and miscellaneous charges, and even presenting documents for negotiation and settlement of foreign exchange. These works have a wide range of contacts and many links. They are relatively concentrated in handling the complicated work of international trade freight transport business, coordinating, coordinating and straightening out the relationship, and enhancing its professionalism, technicality and policy. The formation of the international freight forwarding industry is the inevitable product of the process of international commodity circulation and an indispensable part of international trade All countries in the world are recognized as freight forwarders of international trade enterprises. It is named forwarders in English, and has established an international organization for it, namely "FIATA", abbreviated as "FIATA". Its member countries have developed to more than 130 countries and regions, with more than 3500 international freight forwarding companies and more than 8 million employees. China's Shanghai, Tianjin, Qingdao, Dalian, Jiangsu and Shenzhen have successively set up international freight forwarding associations. The Ministry of foreign trade and economic cooperation is preparing to build China International transport agency association, which will lead local associations and join international organizations Member States.

The international freight forwarding industry has been established as early as the 10th century AD. at the initial stage, it was a customs broker. Most of its employees came from international trade enterprises with high quality. They can handle a considerable part of international trade business and transportation affairs for cargo owners. With the development of trade, a special industry has gradually evolved. In the process of its development, some countries have tried to cancel it and let the consignor and the carrier People have direct business relations and reduced the intermediate links, but none of them has been successful, because the four main bodies of cargo owners, freight forwarders, shipowners (or other transport capacity) and shipping agents in the international freight market can not be mixed with the objects of ports, yards, stations and warehouses, and the competition order in the international freight market will be disordered.