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Hello International Traders! John McDonnell here, with more sites to help you achieve success in international trade.
Luxembourg is tiny in size but not in business potential -- it's a stable, prosperous country with a high living standard and a commitment to trade. I have a site in this issue that will get you started in researching the Luxembourg market. Plus, if you ship products anywhere, I have a site that will help you with your packaging needs. Whatever the forecast, I have a site that will give you the ultimate in weather info. Finally, whether you're a car buyer, seller, hobbyist, or just curious, I have a site that's full of the latest prices and information on cars.
And don't forget -- if you'd like more information about
international trade, go to FITA's Really Useful Links (
http://fita.org/webindex ), which has a link library
of more than 8,000 sites related to international trade.
| LUXEMBOURG
Our Featured Country
If I told you there was a country in the heart of Europe that ranked second in the world for GDP per capita, fourth for economic freedom, first for growth environment, and was named the least risky place in the world to do business, you might think it was one of the large countries like France or Germany. However, you'd be wrong. The country is Luxembourg, and it's an economic marvel. Although it's tiny in terms of land mass, Luxembourg ranks above much larger countries in many economic categories, including imports & exports. If this sounds like a country you'd like to research, a good site to visit is the U.S. Commercial Service Luxembourg page ( http://www.buyusa.gov/luxembourg/en/ ). Click on "Luxembourg Business Advantages", then on "Why Luxembourg?", and you can read a 115 page report on just why Luxembourg is such a promising country for business. There are also links to market research, upcoming trade events, tips on doing business in Luxembourg, finding a business partner, and useful links. The site is oriented toward U.S. companies, but there's plenty of good information here no matter what country you're from.
You'll also find plenty of good research at the Luxembourg Mini Portal ( http://fita.org/countries/lux.html ), a feature of the FITA Web site. The Luxembourg Mini Portal has an overview of the country, with facts about the language, currency, climate, etc., plus more specific information about the economy, Luxembourg markets, taxes, labor market indicators, and tips on doing business in Luxembourg.
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 Luxembourg Mini Portal is one of many research gateways at the 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 ).
The Luxembourg American Chamber of Commerce (http://www.luxembourgbusiness.org/) is a FITA member association. Their website
offers more resources about doing business with Luxembourg.
And click here to search the FITA Member Directory for links to FITA member associations' websites.
PACKAGING SUCCESS AT THE INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTRE
International Rules on Packaging
The old saying, "It's all in the packaging," could apply to anything from the way a restaurant prepares its meals to the way a Hollywood starlet dresses. In the field of international trade, it refers to the importance of packaging in the transport of goods from one place to another. If you don't follow the rules on packaging, your products will run into problems in transit. You can learn a lot about packaging and trade at the International Trade Centre's Packaging for Development ( http://www.intracen.org/ep/ ) page. Click on the topics in the left column to find what you need. "Free Documents" is especially helpful, with dozens of articles, reports and how-tos with practical information. To read the documents, click on the language icon ("English", "French", etc.) next to the title. You'll also find good information if you click on "Useful Links", and, "Glossary of Packaging Terms", among others.
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A GOOD FORECAST FROM WEATHER UNDERGROUND
Plan for Your Next Trip
In my house these days, nobody goes on a trip without first checking the weather forecast online. Now, I've found a site that gives some extra information: historical weather data, which will help you decide how hot, cold, wet, or windy it will be where you're going. At Weather Underground Trip Planner ( http://www.wunderground.com/tripplanner/index.asp ) you just type in a location, and you'll get a summary of the historical weather data for that place. The Trip Planner is just one useful feature at this site. You can also get current weather forecasts, marine conditions, ski reports, tropical storm/hurricane updates, satellite & radar pictures, weather maps (showing heat index, windchill, humidity, precipitation, etc.), and much more.
EVERYTHING ABOUT CARS AT AUTOBYTEL
Use This Before Your Buy or Sell a Car
The Internet has been a boon to people who want to buy or sell a car. Now, you can research prices, makes, and models with the click of a mouse, and if you're selling a car you can reach thousands of people by simply listing your car on a Web site. One good site like this is Autobytel ( http://www.autobytel.com ). Here you can search for new and used cars, read reviews, find parts & accessories, read tips & information from other car buffs, search for local businesses where you can get repair work done, list your car for sale, get price quotes, write your own reviews, share pictures, and much more.
FITA TRADEDOX 360 PRO STREAMLINES YOUR LETTERS OF CREDIT
Free Software for Letter of Credit Documentation
Anyone who does international trade understands the importance of Letters of Credit. These documents are the preferred payment and financing systems for many transactions, because they increase security and lessen risk for all parties involved. Unfortunately, many companies make mistakes in their Letter of Credit documentation, which causes banks to slow down or even stop the payment process. Now, there's an easy and free solution to the Letter of Credit problem -- FITA TradeDoX 360 Pro ( http://fita.org/tradev/ ). This new FITA sponsored software helps you streamline the trade documentation process and eliminate costly and time-consuming errors. TradeDoX’s Documentary Credit Collaboration module allows the importer and exporter to collaborate on the details of the documentary credit, which means that everything is worked out before the importer requests payment guarantees from its bank. This collaboration speeds up the payment process by delivering trade finance documents that are in line with the bank's terms. The software is controlled and managed by you on your company's computers, so you have complete control and security over your trade data. You can get a free copy of the TradeDoX 360 Pro software by registering at the FITA site, and it's certainly worth a look.
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FITA CAREER HEADQUARTERS - FEATURED JOB
Export Compliance Manager
In the 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 an
Export Compliance Manager
for the Oshkosh Truck Corporation in Oshkosh, WI. Click
here to browse more than 700 other positions!
Employers -
Click
here to advertise your job openings on FITA's Career HQ.
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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!
ADVERTISING
"Really Useful Sites for International Trade Professionals" and the FITA website offer unique opportunities for advertisers to reach a targeted international market of people involved in international trade. Click here for information about advertising programs and rates.
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. |
Published by Federation of International Trade Associations
Copyright © 2007 Federation of International Trade Associations. All rights
reserved.
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