The call lasts twenty seconds, and when it’s over Johnson raises his price. To my surprise, he explains why: “It’s an easier [customs] declaration,” he says. “Lot of trouble with mixed loads lately.” In other words, there’s much less risk that a container holding a single kind of metal will become lighter en route to China from Hong Kong, presumably because it doesn’t need to be unloaded for inspection. From Johnson’s point of view, it’s worth the extra few cents per pound.
