Put Your Company at the Export Starting Gate

December 5, 2016
Country Commercial Guides Cover 97 Percent of World Economy Outside of the United States

By Curt Cultic, Senior Communications Specialist, U.S. Commercial Service, International Trade Administration

So what’s new on the export horizon for your company? Perhaps it’s narrowing down your choice of a new market in which to export, finding the latest market intelligence, or looking for the best way to pursue market entry strategies. Whatever your needs, when conducting research on foreign markets, do what thousands of U.S. businesses do each year: start by checking out the International Trade Administration’s U.S. Country Commercial Guides (CCGs). Altogether, the CCGs cover markets representing 97 percent of global GDP outside of the United States.

Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Director General of the U.S. Commercial Service, Arun Kumar today unveiled an expanded portfolio of U.S. Country Commercial Guides, designed to help U.S. companies doing business overseas. This year, 16 new countries, and a World Bank Commercial Guide have been added to the current CCG portfolio. Altogether, the more than 140 countries covered by the CCGs now represent 97 percent of global GDP outside of the United States.

“Made in America has a worldwide reputation,” said Kumar. “Greater access to cutting edge market intelligence is key to helping more U.S. exporters leverage new and emerging international opportunities.”

With the recent addition of 16 new countries, the CCGs now serve as a window into more than 140 foreign markets. Businesses will be able to gain insight into the latest intelligence on high-demand industry sectors – and also receive market-by-market economic overviews, selling techniques, investment climate considerations, trade financing options, and business travel advice and resources.

Since the CCGs are written by “boots-on-the-ground” U.S. Commercial Service trade professionals and U.S. State Department economic officers—all living and working in the country—you can be confident on getting accurate and up-to-date information on your market of interest.

Among the new country additions are the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Ecuador, Fiji, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Oman, Namibia, Qatar, Suriname, and Sri Lanka; as well as a number of sub-Saharan Africa countries: Chad, Sao Tome and Principe, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. In addition, the new CCG portfolio also includes a World Bank Group Commercial Guide that provides insights into how World Bank-funded projects work, and how American firms, from prime contractors to subcontractors and suppliers, can identify and access opportunities in them.

By doing your homework first, you can avoid costly mistakes that could set your company back and cost valuable time and money. That’s critical in today’s competitive global economy where more than 95 percent of world consumers reside outside of U.S. borders.

On the website, businesses can also find out more about the global U.S. Commercial Service export assistance network of 108 offices across the United States, and in U.S. embassies and consulates in more than 75 countries.