THINKING OF EXPORTING? Does your business need information about overseas markets? Do you want to find out more about the U.S. government resources available to U.S. exporters? Do you need help with standards overseas? Two key places to start getting federal trade advice are the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Trade Information Center (TIC) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) [see sidebar, right].

The Trade Information Center

The Trade Information Center helps you harness the resources of 19 federal agencies to obtain top-quality export assistance with a customer-oriented approach, providing free phone, walk-in, and e-mail export counseling.

Businesses calling the Center’s toll-free number at 1-800-USA-TRADE, using the TIC’s Web site, or visiting the TIC at its headquarters in the Commerce Department’s USA Trade Center in the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C., receive export information from a team of experienced international trade specialists. The TIC helps small, medium, and large companies navigate the complex web of documentation requirements and customs regulations that make selling to a buyer in Brazil considerably more complicated than selling to one in Boston. TIC trade specialists provide assistance ranging from advice on “getting started” for the small business learning how to export, to country-specific counseling for the experienced exporter who is entering new markets.

By contacting the TIC, U.S. businesses can receive detailed information about the programs and services of all the federal agencies involved in international trade, including the International Trade Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce. The TIC’s Export Programs Guide: A Business Guide to Federal Export Assistance is a comprehensive resource that lists federal export programs, descriptions, contact information, and Web site addresses. Individual copies of the guide are free and can be ordered by calling the TIC or downloaded from the TIC’s Web site.

Country and Regional Business Counseling

The TIC’s regional teams provide export-related information on Western Europe, Asia, Latin America, NAFTA, Africa, and the Near East. The TIC can provide market intelligence on country commercial conditions, trade regulations and standards, tariff and tax information, and customs information such as documentation requirements. For example, businesses can download the NAFTA certificate of origin and follow step by step instructions for filling out the document, or look up their products’ duty rates in the complete European Union tariff schedule on TIC’s Web site. The content of the site is updated daily by the trade specialists in the TIC, providing real-time information.

For help with Central and Eastern Europe and Russia and the Newly Independent States, you can also contact the Central and Eastern Europe Business Information Center and the Business Information Service for the Newly Independent States, respectively, by phone at the TIC.

Other Useful Resources

The TIC can direct U.S. businesses to many helpful resources such as the over 100 nationwide U.S. Export Assistance Centers (USEACs) operated by the Commerce Department’s U.S. Commercial Service in cooperation with the Small Business Administration and the U.S. Export Import Bank. These centers provide local small and medium-sized U.S. businesses with ongoing and hands-on export marketing and trade finance support, and work closely with the 161 U.S. Commercial Service Offices located in U.S. embassies and consulates around the world. To reach your local USEAC, call the TIC or visit the Web site.

The Commerce Department’s Trade Development industry analysts deliver industry analysis and trade policy support to promote the interests of U.S. exporters, provide advocacy support on behalf of U.S. businesses to win foreign competitions, forge public-private partnerships to enhance the international competitiveness of U.S. industries, and initiate industry specific trade events. To find your industry analyst, call the TIC .

The Trade Compliance Center monitors and investigates foreign compliance with trade agreements. If a company believes a foreign government is not living up to its trade commitments or the company has a complaint about a trade barrier, it can fill out a Hotline Trade Complaint Form online. The TCC investigates many complaints about unfair foreign government regulations or standards. These complaints often involve standards that are burdensome, unnecessary, or discriminatory.

Web Sites

The Trade Information Center can direct you to a wealth of information over the Internet to assist you in conducting research. The following are a few of the many worthwhile federal government sites we encourage you to visit.

The Export Portal

Export.gov is the new interagency trade portal that brings together many U.S. government export-related information products under one Web site. The site encompasses introductory information for conducting international business to more advanced topics, such as searching for trade partners, expanding to new markets, dealing with trade problems, and obtaining financing.

Trade Information Center

The TIC’s award winning Web site comprises thousands of trade-related documents and comprehensive country and regional information, including assistance with NAFTA Certificate of Origin forms and tariff and tax rates. Other useful resources include a National Export Directory that contains international trade contacts for each state, a directory of foreign trade offices in the United States, an Internet guide to export trade leads, and frequently asked questions and answers on exporting. A most valuable resource on the site is the “Ask the TIC” technical advice column from the monthly Department of Commerce magazine Export America, on such topics as CE Mark product certification, hazardous material shipments, software valuation, and many other subjects.

BuyUSA.com

An international electronic marketplace for U.S. businesses, BuyUSA.com helps you to identify potential international partners, transact business online, and obtain export counseling from Commercial Service trade specialists. BuyUSA.com includes managed/targeted trade leads, online catalogs, automated searching and sourcing, financing, logistics, currency conversion, due diligence, and much more.

U.S. Commercial Service

The U.S. Commercial Service Web site offers valuable assistance to help businesses export goods and services to markets worldwide. From this site you can access a global listing of trade events, international market research, including Country Commercial Guides and Industry Sector Analyses, and practical tools to help with every step of the export process.

Census Department Foreign Trade Division

The U.S. Department of Commerce offers a variety of resources useful for locating statistical information on U.S. exports. The Foreign Trade Division of the U.S. Census Bureau compiles information on the U.S. trade balance, import and export totals, general commodity groupings, and country totals.

The Department of Commerce Office of Trade and Economic Analysis

OTEA provides information on aggregate foreign trade data, including historical data on U.S. trade in goods and services and a breakdown of the United States’ top 50 trade partners. OTEA’s Web site lists statistics on exports by state, metropolitan area, and industry, and provides commodity statistics using the new North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).

STAT-USA

STAT-USA delivers vital economic business and international trade information produced by various offices and divisions of the government. This information can be accessed through low-cost subscription services like STAT-USA/Internet and the National Trade Data Bank (CD-ROM), and free of charge at any of the 1300 nationwide federal depository libraries.

For assistance navigating these Web sites, please call the TIC.

Trade Events and Activities

The TIC can direct you to a host of export promotion events and mechanisms. The Department of Commerce’s worldwide presence and information technology resources offer a variety of ways to establish contacts abroad.

For companies that would like to gather contacts without traveling overseas, the local U.S. Export Assistance Centers offer several programs. First, the International Partner Search is an excellent, inexpensive method for obtaining a tailored list of agents, distributors, and foreign representatives for your firm. In addition, an exporter can commission an International Company Profile to check the reputation, reliability, and financial status of a prospective foreign trading partner. Virtual Trade Missions use the latest video conferencing technology to help you meet prospective agents, distributors or buyers. All of these services can be accessed locally through the Department of Commerce’s Export Assistance Centers. To find the U.S. Export Assistance Center closest to you, please call the TIC.

The Department of Commerce is involved in some 80 to 100 trade fairs and trade missions each year in viable markets for the new-to-export and new-to-market firms. Exhibiting at a trade show can lead to tremendous export opportunities for U.S. companies. Trade missions, led by government officials, are organized on an industry and country basis, and offer participants pre-arranged appointments with potential buyers and government officials in the destination country.

Catalog Exhibitions/Product Literature Centers are convenient, affordable ways to generate sales leads and find qualified representatives, distributors, licensing, and joint venture partners. The U.S. Department of Commerce, in cooperation with state economic development offices, will present your company’s product literature to interested business prospects abroad and send the leads directly to you.

In Conclusion

Exporting is a complex business, but with the help of the TIC and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (see sidebar, right), even newcomers to global trade can find their way. Don’t hesitate to contact the TIC at 800/USA-TRADE.  //

Copyright © ASTM, 2001