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1. ROLE OF
EXPORT PROMOTION AGENCIES
IN
INTERNATIONAL TRADE
Presentation by
Arun Kumar
Trade Consultant
CIG Export Service
India

2. Sourcing Names and Addresses of Importers
Sources are:
(a) who are visiting India for their purchases,
(b) the exporters come across the importers
during their export promotional tours abroad
and
(c) followed by letters of importers showing
interest in importing goods from India
(d) Buying House Agents
(e) important Websites available in the Internet

3. Role Of Export Promotion Organisations
The Government of India have established a number of
institutions and organisations and Corporations for
promoting exports from India. Export Promotion
Organisations and Institutions can broadly be
classified into the following categories:
- Government Departments
- Export Promotion Councils / Commodity
Boards
- Service Institutions
- Inspection Agencies
- Export Corporations.

4. Service Institutions
•Indian Institute of Foreign Trade
•India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO)
•Director General of Foreign Trade
•Indian Council of Arbitration
•Indian Institute of Packaging
•Export Import Bank (EXIM Bank)
•Export Inspection Council (EIC)
•Textiles Committee

5. Survey of Target Markets
nformation on prospective markets is vital, both for new
as well as established exporters interested in
enhancing their exports. The following key details
regarding the potential markets are essential to
exporters—
•Size of the market
•Growth prospects
•Market preferences
•Demand supply gap
•Current suppliers.
uch preliminary market information will help exporters
in identifying potential markets for their products.

6. Trade Enquiries
After gaining an understanding of the market for
their products, the next requirement of
exporters is to identify trade enquiries. Though
there are a number of sources providing such
information, there is need for a single source to
monitor all business opportunities and trade
enquiries emanating globally. In addition,
exporters are also interested in posting their
trade offers to prospective partners abroad.

7. Product Development and Fashion Trends
This is a key requirement for exporters keen on benchmarking
their products with the best available globally. In industries like
leather and apparel, this information is critical for the local
exporters to plan their raw material procurement, well in
advance of the season, to suit the future requirements of the
market.
Customer preferences in electronics industry also reported to
be fast changing and exporters would need to fine-tune their
product features to stay in business.
This information may not be critical to small exporters who are
mostly job order dependent, wherein the overseas buyer
dictates the product specifications and features.

8. Credit Appraisal of Trading Partners
Traditionally, overseas trading partners are either
identified through personal visits abroad or
through agents and brokers. With the evolution
of the Internet as a medium for identifying trade
opportunities, it becomes increasingly important
to examine the credit-worthiness of the identified
buyer before exporting the products. This step
is very essential for Indian exporters to
safeguard themselves from unreliable trading
partners abroad.

9. Regulations/Tariffs relating to Imports and Exports
Globally, countries are forced to modify
their trade policies to suit the dynamically
changing business scenario. Exporters
feel the need for a single source providing
country-wise updated import and export
policies. This would also help them in
identifying markets in countries with
favourable import policies.

10. Current Sources—
Publications of Industry Associations and Bodies.
Mailers and Bulletins from Export Promotion Councils
& FIEO
Online Data Sources -- The Federation of Indian
Chambers of Commerce and Industry makes available
its online database. ASSOCHAM, CII, FIEO have also
established a databank for the benefit of its members.
Overseas Trade Journals
Industry Specific Pages
Port Based Information on Exports and Imports

11. Trade and Business Enquiries
Some of the reputed sources for global
trade enquiries include
•Import-Export Bulletin Board (IEBB) /
STAT-USA
•Reuters Network for Tenders
•World Trade Center (WTC) Network

12. Country Profiles and Import Export Policies
With the emergence of the global market, it is essential
for Indian exporters to know about a country’s political
climate and future of its economy before deciding g on
any long-term business relationships. Sites providing
reliable information on countries include:
Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU)
Price Waterhouse
I-TRADE (IT)
These sites are well updated and comprehensive. Sites
like EIU also provide a rating on risks associated with
trading with a country based on its current economic
performance and is likely future.

13. Latest Traded Prices of Certain Commodities
Latest traded price information in important
global markets is important for exporters of
leather and agricultural products. International
Trade Center (ITC), Geneva, regularly monitors
trade prices and forwards the same to
subscribers through email.

14. Credit Appraisal
Credit appraisal is a key requirement for medium and
small-scale exporters, for which the internationally
recognized sources are:
•Dun & Bradstreet (D&B)
•TRW
TRW is an important source for information on small and
medium sized companies.

16. POPULAR CREDIT RATNG AGENCIES WORLDWIDE
•
– Alexander and Hamilton International custom credit reporting
– http://www.alhamco.com/english/credit_reporting.html
– Canadian Credit Reporting Ltd. Canadian-based, investigative credit reporting agency, operating out of Toronto
– http://www.canadiancredit.com/
– China Credit Information Service Credit reporting for Taiwanese companies
– http://www.credit.com.tw/english.cfm
– http://www.cofacerating.com/ A global credit rating system, rating the security of the trade debt of any company. "Trade debt"
means any debt up to 6 months, in the 1,000-100,000 euros (or USD) range, which is the range of most of e-commerce
transactions,
– http://www.cofacerating.com/
– Credit Exchange Company that offers various credit and collection services specific to the transportation industry
– http://www.creditexchange.com/
– Credit FYI Credit reports for small US businesses with sales less than $5 million
– http://www.creditfyi.com/
– Credit Information Reports from Business Credit Management UK Complete UK companies credit reporting service
– http://www.creditman.co.uk/
– Credit Management Information & Support Links to most credit reporting agencies and other credit management Web sites
– http://www.creditworthy.com/
– Credit Report Latin America & World Credit reports from Latin America and other countries
– http://www.crla.com/
– Credit Risk Monitor Online Internet based financial information and news service that follows almost 400 U.S. publicly held retail
chains and wholesalers
– http://www.creditriskmonitor.com/
– Disclosure Provider of financial intelligence delivered via online and CD-ROM-based research tools. Subscribers have access to a
full range of proprietary and third-party company information.
– http://www.disclosure.com/
– Duff & Phelps Credit Rating International credit reports
– http://www.bradynet.com/e31.html
– Dun & Bradstreet Information Services Dun & Bradstreet Information Services is the world's leading provider of business to
business information and decision-support services. DBIS gathers and manages information on more than 40 million businesses
worldwide and markets its products in more than 120 countries.
– http://www.dunandbradstreet.com/
– Equifax Worldwide business and consumer credit reports
– http://www.equifax.com/
– Experian TRW Information Systems & Services (IS&S) is a leading provider of consumer and business credit, direct marketing and
real estate information services and high-volume transaction-processing systems
– http://www.experian.com/

17. POPULAR CREDIT RATNG AGENCIES WORLDWIDE
– F&D Reports Credit solutions to manufacturers, wholesalers/distributors, and retailers of food,
pharmaceuticals, consumer electronics, apparel and other products.
– http://www.fdreports.com/
– FCIB International Credit and Country Report International independent credit reports
– http://www.fcibglobal.com/
– Global Credit Reports Listings and links to local credit reporting agencies worldwide
– http://www.intl-credit.com/
– Graydon Credit Management Services Global credit reports and credit information management services
– http://www.graydon.co.uk/
– Infospectrum Provider of credit reports and commercial research to the international business world.
– http://www.infospectrum.net/
– J.I. International Worldwide credit reports
– http://www.jiintl.com/
– Kreller International Services Worldwide credit reports
– http://www.kreller.com/
– MRC Consultancy Services Ltd. Company reports for the marine, energy, industrial, commodities and
transportation markets.
– http://www.mrcinfo.com/
– Owens On-Line Online credit information service with over 8.5 million company files
– http://www.owens.com/
– SCRL Group Credit information about all companies in France
– http://www.scrl.com/
– TCM India Credit reports for India and worldwide
– http://www.tcmindia.com/
– UK Data Ltd Online credit reports on every UK business
– http://www.ukdata.com/
– Veritas Global credit reports and country risk reports.
– http://www.veritas-usa.com/
– Whitehall Consultants International company credit reports, country risk reports, or debt collection services
– http://www.whitehallusa.com/

18. International Laws
Web sites like the International Trade Law
Monitor (ITL) provide region and country
specific trade related laws, useful to
exporters trying to access the legal impacts
of entering new markets and to identify
friendly markets.

21. Import and Export Statistics
Databases like Datastar and Dialog provide
details of exports and imports from major ports
in the USA and Europe. New exporters facing the
requirement of pricing their products often find it
useful to know the price quoted by fellow
exporters in the industry.
A common problem in the use of this information
by some exporters to undercut prices and gain
unfair competitive advantage.

22. Trade Market Surveys
Survey of market potential for products in
markets is an essential requirement for
exporters exploring possibilities in new
markets and country. While sites like
Datastar and Dialog offer preliminary
reports on the market potential for
products, sites like I-TRADE offer to
undertake custom market research on
behalf of interested exporters.

23. Other Useful Sources
Most of the traditional sources of trade related
information are now available on the web, which is fast
emerging as a convenient means of distributing
information. There are industry specific sites like
Apparelnet (for apparel industry), which focus on the
industry’s requirements. Other sites like Asian Sources
On-line focus on the requirements of a region. The
advantage of such sources is their in-depth coverage of
a sector or region.
While sponsored sites providing general information
offer access free of charge, sites offering reliable
information often charge access fees.

48. Sector-Based Portals for Market Research
For different sector, there are very useful portal
websites that offer comprehensive information, or
function as a gateway to other sources on the Internet.
They should be the starting point for the data mining
efforts. These portal sites characteristically offer
industry news, information about product development,
business directories and, sometimes, a buyers and
sellers platform. Usually, they also provide information
about existing new or upcoming regulations. Some
examples of interesting portals are:

49. www.autonewseurope.com (car parts)
www.devicelink.com (medical devices)
www.fis.com (seafood)
www.fruitnet.com (fruits)
www.flowerweb.com (flowers)
www.organics.com (organic products)
www.freshinfo.com (fresh food)
www.foodnavigator.com (processed food)
www.herbs.org (herbs and spices)
www.leathernet.com (leather)
www.organic-europe.net (organic products)
Information about portal websites can often be obtained from
traditional printed media, like the trade press, or from other online
sources, like the CBI website’s link plaza or the International Trade
Centre (ITC) tool P-maps (www.p-maps.org).

50. Generic Market Information Portals
CBI and ITC provide generic market information
portals, covering a large number of product
groups and a wide range of themes. Particular
reference is made to the statistical tool of ITC’s
P-maps (Tradingmap) and CBI’s market
information database and link plaza. Use of
CBI’s databases is free of charge. Subscription
to ITC’s p-maps differs. For details browse –
www.cbi.nl; www.p-maps.org

51. Search Engines
To know information about a portal site, reference may
be made to the trade magazines for Internet links and
use one of the international search engines. Google
(www.google.com) is currently the most popular search
engine. Keep in mind that while using the search
engine, it is best to use the advanced search option in
order to filter the results and to keep them manageable.
The methodology is “Input is output”. A general
question will lead to general results. It is better to
formulate the search as accurately as possible.

52. Country Information
Many sources on the Internet provide macro-
economic country data. Country Reports
(www.countryreports.org), for instance, is a
database with country information covering
practically any country in the world and offering
relevant and fairly up-to-date macro data. Other
country information can be obtained from
Eurostat, the datashop of the European Union
(www.europa.eu.int)/index_en.htm) and the
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD) (www.oecd.org).

53. Market Size, Trade Statistics
Information about market size, segments and developments is
included in the market reports downloadable from the CBI website.
These kind of information are also available in articles and reports
on portal sites or on websites of industry associations. The link
plaza on the CBI’s website includes links to sector-based portal
sites and industry associations. Trade statistics are also available
(though not free of charge) through Eurostat. For agricultural
products, Faostat, the statistical database of the Food and
Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations provides a
very useful source for trade as well as production statistics.
Search filters include product, market, volume and value as well as
multipleyears selection. The Faostat database is free of charge
(http://www.fao.org/waicent/portal/statistics.en.asp).

54. Standards and Legislation
Information about safety & health, social and
environmental issues, as well as other legislation and
product standards, is available through the CBI’s market
information and Access guide database or from the
European Commission’s database, Eur-lex
(www.europa.eu.int/eur-lex).
Some of the main sources of information for the food
industry on food sAfety are www.codexalimentarius.net
and htpp://foodnet.fie.ca (one can download the full
HACCP manual).

55. Import Duties
The European Commission has also
published a database with all import
duties on the Internet. To search by
product and country of origin
browse.
www.europa.eu.int/comm/taxation_cus
toms/index_en.htm

56. Market Players
Information about market players, importers,
wholesalers, retailers and manufacturers as well as
competitors is available from market reports. Online
business directories and trade fair catalogues are also
helpful in this respect (often available online at the
website of the tradefair organizer), Business directories
can be found on sector-based portals. There are also
generic business directories. The most important
generic online directories are Europages
(www.europages.com) and Kompass
(www.kompass.com). Business directories offer
multiple search filters, like product group, market,
company type or company size.

57. Prices
Some interesting sources for price information are—
www.public-ledger/com - (Commodities). Check the site for
the subscription fee.
www.todaymarket.com – The today market website offers a
free trial for 7 days. Subcriptin is US$ 25 per month.
www.fintrac.com/gain/prices - This is the website of the
Global Agribusiness Information Network. It provides
information about wholesale fruits, vegetables, herbs and
flower prices free of charge for various markets in the United
States, Latin America, Europe and Japan. Depending on the
market selection, the information can be one to seven days old.
www.p-maps.org - The ITC’s p-maps contain Market News
Services with wholesale import prices for selected commodities.
Subscription prices vary.

58. Distribution Channels
•Information on distribution channels can be obtained
from market reports (like the CBI’s) and from the
industry associations.
Trade Fairs
•Information about trade fairs all over the world can
be obtained free of charge from the following
databases. www.tsnn.com and www.exhibitions-
world.com.

59. For more details about Our
Services
Kindly contact
CIG Export Services
Mayur Vihar Phase-1
New Delhi-110091
Phone: +919654051034
Email:
info@connectingindiaglobally.com