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Hello International Traders! Turkey is a gateway to both Europe and Asia, and if you want to
get a foothold in the Turkish market, I've got a site in this
issue for you. If jet lag is a problem when you travel, check out
the site I found that will help you reset your body clock. I also
found a site with tons of links to country risk ratings, so you
can find out what the experts say about a country before you do
business there. Finally, gardening season is here, and I have a
site that will help you make your garden better than ever this
year! And don't forget -- if you'd like more information about
international trade, go to FITA's Really Useful Links (
http://fita.org/webindex/index.html ), which has a link library
of more than 8,000 sites related to international trade.
| TURKEY -- OUR FEATURED COUNTRY
At the center of Europe and Asia, Turkey has been a pipeline for
trade goods traveling between the two continents for millennia.
Today it has a lot to offer international businesspeople,
including GDP growth of 9 percent in 2004, and inflation of only
7.7 percent in 2005 (a 30 year low). Turkey has applied to join
the European Union, and its membership in the EU will have a
positive effect on Turkish trade.
If you want to learn more about trade with Turkey, a good site to
visit is the U.S. Commercial Service Turkey page (
http://www.buyusa.gov/turkey/en/country_commercial_guide.html ).
Click on "Country Commercial Guide: Turkey" and you'll find a PDF
file that's loaded with useful information about: the current
political and economic situation; selling products & services in
Turkey; trade regulations & standards; the investment climate;
financing; travel; contacts; market research; and more.
Another good resource is the Turkey Mini Portal (http://fita.org/countries/turkey.html), one of the new features
at the FITA site. The Mini Portal is a good place to start your
research. There is an overview of the country, with facts about
the language, currency, climate, etc., plus more specific
information about the economy, Turkish markets, taxes, labor
market indicators, tips on doing business, and a search engine to
help you find market research on the Internet. There's also a
news feed with the latest headlines from Turkey.
Click on "Useful Links" and you'll find a variety of sources for
market research, trade leads, business directories, logistics,
government contacts, travel, financing, and lots more.
The Turkey Mini Portal is one of many research gateways at the
newly redesigned FITA site. To find Mini Portals for other
regions or countries, just click on "Country Profiles" from
within a Mini Portal, or at the FITA home page (http://www.fita.org).
FITA's Global Trade Book Store has some excellent books about doing
business in the EU. Check out Doing Business With Turkey and Culture Shock! Turkey. And the
American-Turkish Council, the Turkish-American Chamber of Commerce & Industry and the Turkish American Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Maritime Trade are FITA member associations. Check out their websites
for more resources about doing business with Turkey.
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COUNTRY RISK RATINGS ARCHIVE
The world is riskier than it used to be, and businesspeople need
to be aware of risk factors when they research a new market.
There are surveys and statistics on this very topic, and you'll
find a good selection of them at Countryrisk.com's Country Risk
Ratings Archives (
http://www.countryrisk.com/guide/archives/cat_country_risk_ratings.html ). This is a collection of links to country rankings, done
by various organizations and governments. You'll find rankings
for things like trade credit loss, sovereign default,
confiscation/expropriation, war, etc. And this page is not the
only valuable one at this site. In the left column you'll see
links to other country rankings, data & statistics, and research
& analysis sites. I found the Failed States Index (
http://www.fundforpeace.org/programs/fsi/fsindex.php )
particularly interesting.
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faster, smarter, and at lower costs. ConferencePlus offers a complete portfolio
of audio, web, and videoconferencing services that can help you meet virtually
to collaborate, negotiate, and close the deal. To help you get started, ConferencePlus
has created a new program for "Really Useful Sites" subscribers with special
introductory rates. To learn more, go to http://fita.org/marketplace/conference.html
or call 1-800-930-7714 to start saving today! |
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JET LAG CALCULATOR
If you fly overseas a lot, you probably have experienced jet lag.
Flying across time zones disrupts the body's natural rhythms, and
it can take days before your internal clock adjusts. The Jet Lag
Calculator ( http://www.bodyclock.com ) has some good advice on
how to handle jet lag, and you can find tips based on the length
of your flight. The basic idea, it seems, is to reset your body's
clock by exposing it to light at strategic times. This site has
products for sale that can help, but it also has free advice
about when to go out in the sun, and how much light you need to
be exposed to in order to alleviate the effects of jet lag. There
is also useful information here about conditions like Seasonal
Affective Disorder (SAD, or Winter Blues), and insomnia.
GARDENWEB
It's getting to be that time of year again, when I get the urge
to plant flowers, bushes, even trees on my property. Gardening
used to be a hit or miss affair for me, with each plant's chances
of survival dicey at best, but now that I've discovered GardenWeb ( http://www.gardenweb.com ) my plants will have a brighter
future. I can do a keyword search for gardening information, and
I'll get dozens of articles and instructions. Or, I can browse
the FAQs for information about everything from African violets to
weeds. GardenWeb also has message forums, which they say are the
"largest community of gardeners on the Internet" where gardeners
worldwide can ask and answer questions about every aspect of
gardening.
FITA CAREER HEADQUARTERS - FEATURED JOB - NAFTA TRADE ADMINISTRATOR
In the new FITA Career Headquarters job seekers can now apply for jobs online
and post their resume--free of charge--in an exclusive database that will be searched
by hundreds of industry employers seeking employees with international degrees
and/or related work experience. Featured job this week is for a NAFTA Trade Adminstrator for Intermatic, Inc., a global manufacturer of consumer and industrial energy control products. Click
here to browse more than 700 other positions! And click
here if you are an employer looking for uniquely qualified internationally-skilled
staff.
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GIVE US FEEDBACK!
Please tell us what you think of these Really Useful Sites! Send us your comments (newsletter@fita.org) about this or past issues or to give us suggestions about future editions!
BENEFITS FOR OUR SUBSCRIBERS
http://www.fita.org/marketplace FITA offers our subscribers many benefits. Go to the "Global Trade Shop" for services that are of great value. For example:
Take a look! We welcome our subscribers to publish this whole issue or articles from it. But please note that all material is copyrighted by FITA and must be copied with the following attribution: "This is copied from the newsletter Really Useful Sites for International Trade Professionals, a free, bi-weekly email publication of FITA - The Federation of International Trade Associations. Please feel free to subscribe to this newsletter at http://fita.org/useful."
If you'd like to see all back issues of Really Useful Sites for International Trade Professionals, the full list is at http://www.fita.org/useful/archives. |
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