Hundredweight (CWT) Definition

What Is a Hundredweight (CWT)?

A hundredweight (CWT) is a unit of measurement used to outline the portions of sure commodities being purchased and bought. It’s utilized in some commodities buying and selling contracts. Pricing by hundredweight is also an ordinary choice for delivery packages that take up lower than a complete truckload.

Utilization of hundredweight extra typically has declined in favor of contract specs in kilos or kilograms.

The worth of a hundredweight differs in its American and British usages. In america, a hundredweight is a unit of mass equal to 100 kilos. In the UK, a hundredweight is a unit of mass equal to 112 kilos.

The 2 values are generally distinguished by referring to the American hundredweight as a “brief hundredweight” and the British hundredweight as a “lengthy hundredweight.” The brief hundredweight can also be generally known as a “cental.”

Understanding Hundredweight (CWT)

The hundredweight has been used as a measurement of mass in Europe for the reason that late Medieval period. Merchants purchased and bought items like wax, sugar, and pepper in hundredweights, though the exact quantity that meant on the time might be 100 kilos or 108 kilos. Since 1340, when King Edward III modified the official definition of 1 stone to 14 kilos, one hundredweight has equaled eight stones or 112 kilos.

The abbreviation “CWT” refers to centum or cental weight, that means hundredweight.

This was set in legislation in 1835 when the Weights and Measures Act established one hundredweight as 112 kilos,

Within the U.S. and Canada, one hundredweight, then and now, is 100 kilos.

When a Hundredweight Is Not 100 Kilos

In 1824, it turned unlawful for British retailers to make use of the time period hundredweight to check with a unit of 100 kilos, and retailers might be sued for fraudulent exercise for doing so. In 1879, it turned authorized once more to make use of of measurement of 100 kilos in Britain, however solely when it was labeled a “cental.”

The time period hundredweight is derived from the French avoirdupois weight system which was established in England within the late Medieval interval. It offered an ordinary for measurement, simplifying the buying and selling of sure items amongst nations.

This was particularly useful when coping with commodities that have been traded in massive portions. It was accepted that 20 hundredweights have been one ton. A brief ton weighed 2,000 kilos and an extended ton weighed 2,240 kilos.

Examples of Hundredweight (CWT)

The hundredweight is most frequently used as a unit of measure for buying and selling massive portions of commodities. It is also used when referring to merchandise which can be exceptionally heavy, resembling metal.

Many meals gadgets resembling cattle, oil, seeds, and grains are measured utilizing the hundredweight, together with merchandise bought in bulk together with paper and a few chemical substances or components.

Cattle by Hundredweight

Within the futures markets, costs for cattle and different livestock are quoted in hundredweights, whereas costs for meals like espresso and sugar are priced by cents per pound.

Costs of futures together with livestock and rice could also be measured and traded in hundredweight.

Anvils have been generally measured in hundredweight, utilizing a decimal designation to state the variety of hundredweights, quarter-hundredweights, and kilos the anvil weighed. The system can nonetheless be used to point anvil weight.

Particular Concerns

With the elevated use of the metric system throughout Europe, the hundredweight typically fell out of favor. Because the metric system created a extra universally accepted normal, dealing in hundredweight turned much less frequent. The potential for confusion between the British and North American definitions helped make it unpopular for worldwide commerce.

Despite the fact that it’s not as generally used because it as soon as was, it’s nonetheless an accepted unit of measurement. The hundredweight is used inside sure U.S. sectors, particularly these referring to agriculture, though most commerce is carried out in kilos or kilograms.

CWT Transport vs. LTL Transport

Transport firms that deal with smaller a great deal of items can usually select between two pricing choices for transporting their packages: hundredweight (CWT) or less-than-truckload (LTL) pricing. Usually, a delivery firm that focuses on carrying small hundreds from many consumers depends on hundredweight pricing.

UPS and FedEx, for instance, each provide hundredweight choices for delivery packages.

Benefits and Disadvantages

In accordance with Clearview Audit, a agency that focuses on provide chain administration companies, each choices have benefits and drawbacks:

• LTL delivery requires that packages be loaded onto a pallet and should embody very heavy, massive, or oddly formed items. This selection is commonly used when all the items being shipped are going to the identical vacation spot, resembling a warehouse.
• Hundredweight delivery requires much less dealing with, as a number of packages may be despatched with out loading them onto pallets. It’s usually utilized by small shippers sending packages to plenty of locations.

The higher delivery alternative is dependent upon many components, together with the scale, form, and weight of the merchandise being shipped and the space being coated.

CWT FAQs

How Do You Calculate CWT in Cattle?

Within the U.S., cattle and all different commodities are weighed in kilos. A hundredweight equals 100 kilos in North America. So, the full weight of the cattle divided by 100 equals the variety of hundredweight of cattle.

How Are Freight Costs Calculated With CWT?

The delivery fee will likely be quoted as a worth per cwt. For instance, the quoted worth could be $30 per cwt. A 500-pound cargo is 5 hundredweight. The whole worth is 30X5, or $150.

How Many Kilograms Are There in a Hundredweight (CWT)?

One pound equals 0.453592 kilograms. A hundredweight within the U.S. measurement of 100 kilos would equal 45.3592 kilograms. A hundredweight within the British measurement of 112 kilos is 50.8023 kilograms.

The Backside Line

The hundredweight survives as an ordinary unit of measurement within the twenty first century however solely in plenty of particular makes use of. It’s used to point the amount of some commodities being purchased and bought within the market, and of some commodity futures being traded within the monetary markets. It is also used to point the amount of products being shipped by freight.

One downside with utilizing the hundredweight for world commerce is that it has two normal definitions: It is 100 kilos within the U.S. and Canada and 112 kilos within the U.Ok.