India is the second most populous country in the world and the world's 11th largest economy in terms of GDP. Its economy is mainly based on services, which contribute to more than half of the GDP, thanks to the Software and the New Information Technologies (NIT) sectors. Industry accounts for 28% of GDP, led by the textile and chemical industry sectors. India is also the world's fourth agricultural power. Agriculture contributes to about 20% of GDP and employs close to two-thirds of the active population. For more information, you can consult the last report of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry on the Current state of Indian Economy.

India was a protectionist state for a long time. More recently the country has become progressively more open to international trade. It recently signed free trade agreements with South Korea and the ASEAN nations, and has entered into negotiations with several partners (EU, MERCOSUR, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa). The country imports petroleum, jewelry materials such as gold and diamonds, coal, electrical equipment and aircraft. It exports iron, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, rice and textile products. As imported products are of higher value added than exported products, India maintains a high commercial deficit. See more details about most popular products traded between India & United States (imported or exported) on the website of the US Census Bureau. For more statistical data on Indian foreign trade, you can visit the website of the Ministry of Commerce & Industry.

The India Mini Portal is one of many research gateways at the FITA site. To find Mini Portals for other countries, just click on "Country Profiles" from within a Mini Portal, or at the FITA home page.

Global Trade Alert provides real-time information on worldwide governments’ measures that are likely to affect foreign commerce. Among its services is a database that allows you to search for governments’ actions that affect specific types of trade issues worldwide. Find recent measures and news on the home page. Consult the database to search by criteria.

ImportGenius.com Reveals U.S. Customer Lists for Your Suppliers
Ever wonder if your suppliers are telling the truth about who their customers are in the U.S.? Want to find out where your competitors source their products in China or anywhere else in the world? Looking for a fast way to identify legitimate suppliers for virtually any product?

The ImportGenius.com database of genuine U.S. Customs records reveals the truth about trading connections between American firms and their overseas suppliers. By indexing more than 50 million ocean freight shipping manifests, the company has created a powerful competitive intelligence and supplier research tool that lets you:

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• Identify new sources for virtually any product
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This information can be very usefully in understanding this kind of communication and boosting your international marketing plan from your desktop!

Do you want to import from China in the New Year? Like all businesses processes, the process of importing from China has a lot of steps, each of which has its own complexities. For folks new to importing, these steps can seem overwhelming. But building import knowledge and expertise gives you access to a broader range of products at a broader range of prices than your competitors, thus giving you more product options to compete with. There are several key areas a new buyer needs to learn to import from China.
Identifying suppliers

There are many resources to help you find suppliers. Twenty years ago, you'd mainly rely on trade magazines to publish information about manufacturers and suppliers. Companies like Global Sources have evolved from such publishing roots to also provide information via the Internet and Trade Shows.

The GlobalSources.com online directory provides information about thousands of verified China suppliers and hundreds of thousands of products from these suppliers. When using online directories, check what steps the directory owner has taken to ensure suppliers are real. On GlobalSources.com, suppliers listed as verified suppliers have been visited at least three times, so you can be comfortable they are real companies, with real people and real offices. Read the full article here to learn three other keys areas on importing from China - paying suppliers, managing quality control and the logistics getting goods shipped from overseas to your warehouse.

• Mobley & Associates - Arbitration and Mediation in United States
• Pinnacle Solutions Incorporated - Arbitration and Mediation in Russia
• Interlink International Trading (UK) Ltd - Maritime Commercial Dispute Management in United Kingdom

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 this week is a listing for a Import/Export Compliance Administrator for Universal Avionics Systems Corporation in Tucson, AZ. Click here to browse more than 700 other positions!

Employers - Click here to advertise your job openings on FITA's Career HQ.

Let the jobs come to you! Employers are looking for people with international skills. Post your resume TODAY and reap the rewards of the FITA Career HQ! And with a FITA Career HQ job agent, you can decide what kind of job you are looking for and let the system do the searching for you. Simply set up specific search parameters in a Job Agent, and whenever a job is posted that matches your criteria, you'll be notified automatically via email. It's that easy!

The U.S. Commercial Service, a division of the International Trade Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce, sponsors and participates in many events and webinars that help U.S. exporters sell overseas and help overseas buyers learn about U.S. exports. The Commercial Service has a searchable database of these events worldwide at www.export.gov/each/trade_events.asp. Below are some upcoming events: