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International Business and Marketing Resources

Country Information:
Comparative Statistics | Country Statistics | Overviews | Additional Data
Industry Information:
Overviews | Industry Codes | Statistics & Tables | Specific Industries | Industry Associations | Articles
Company Information:
U.S. Companies | Foreign Companies | Advertising & Marketing | Fee-Based Market Research

Remember:

  • Terminology on balance sheets may vary
  • Check dates and sources on documents
  • Currency conversion
  • Try to find multiple analyses of same market

Country Information

Comparative Statistics

USC Online Resources (Subscription-based)

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Generally Available Online Resources

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Crocker Business Library

  • Statistical Abstract of the United States contains tables with basic economic and demographic statistics for most countries. (Reference Desk: HA202.A4)
  • International Marketing Data and Statistics has information on general economic statistics as well as industry statistics. (Reference HA42. I56)
  • International Financial Statistics Yearbook (Reference HG3881 .I6259)
  • Key Indicators of the Labour Market (Reference HD5712 .K49 2003)
  • European Marketing Data and Statistics (Reference HA1107.E87 2000)
  • Global Competitiveness Report is issued annually by the World Economic Forum and contains indices, overviews, trends and country profiles. (Reference HF1414 .G5563)
  • Global Development Finance is a two-volume set issued annually by the World Bank and contains analysis and statistical tables plus country data. (Reference Desk HJ8011 .W92)
  • Encyclopedia of Global Industries (available through the Gale Virtual Reference Library's Business module)
  • Manufacturing Worldwide (Reference HD9720.1 M33)
  • The Global Information Technology Report is issued by INSEAD and the World Economic Forum and contains statistics on technology networks infrastructures in various countries. (Reference T58.5 .G6 2005)

VKC Library

  • World Development Indicators (Reference Desk HC59.69.W67)

  • World Development Indicators (CD-ROM) (Reference Desk No. 180 Micro-Disk)

  • World Bank Atlas (Reference Desk G1046.GI5)

  • World Development Report (Reference Desk HC59.7.W659)

  • International Financial Statistics (Journal stacks)

Country Statistics

USC Online Resources (Subscription-based)

  • EIU Country Profiles and Country Reports are good sources of current political and economic analysis of countries profiled. Click on the "Enterprise Client Access" button to access the database.
  • Mergent Online contains comprehensive country profiles with maps, graphics and tabular data on over 200 countries.
  • Global Market Information Database contains macroeconomic, demographic and other data easily exported to Excel. 
  • Global Road Warrior contains brief country profiles along with business and cultural information.
  • ISI Emerging Markets covers information on a variety of countries with links to newspapers, reports, and other Internet-based resources on these countries. Coverage limited to emerging markets in Asia, Eastern Europe, Central and South America.
  • RAND Database Foreign Trade contains detailed figures on imports and exports to the U.S. 

 

Generally Available Online Resources

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Statistics Locators

USC Online Resources (Subscription-based)

  • CIS Statistical Universe indexes statistics in government publications, web resources, trade publications, international organization's reports. This helps you find print resources in most cases.

Generally Available Online Resources

Crocker Business Library

  • Statesman Yearbook  (Reference JA51 .S797)
  • European Marketing and Statistics (Reference HA1107.E87)

  • International Marketing Data and Statistics (Reference HA42.I56)

  • Global Competitiveness Report is issued annually by the World Economic Forum and contains indices, overviews, trends and country profiles. (Reference HF1414 .G5563)

  • Global Development Finance is a two-volume set issued annually by the World Bank and contains analysis and statistical tables plus country data. (Reference Desk HJ8011 .W92)

  • Encyclopedia of Global Industries (available through the Gale Virtual Reference Library's Business module)

VKC Library

  • Panorama of EC Industry (VKC International Documents Room HC241.2.P313)

Country Overviews/Profiles

USC Online Resources (Subscription-based)

  • STAT-USA provides access to the National Trade Databank and import and export information from the federal government. Contains Country Commercial Guides. Look in the GLOBUS component for international reports.
  • EIU Country Profiles and Country Reports are good sources of current political and economic analysis of countries profiled. Click on the "Enterprise Client Access" link to access the database.
  • ISI Emerging Markets covers information on a variety of countries with links to newspapers, reports and other Internet-based resources on these countries. Coverage limited to emerging markets in Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Central and South America.
  • Mergent Online contains comprehensive country profiles with maps, graphics and tabular data.
  • Global Road Warrior contains general country background information and business travel pointers.
  • Encyclopaedia Britannica is a good source for a broad overview of a country's history and culture.
  • Columbia International Affairs Online (CIAO) is a comprehensive resource for information on international affairs but deals primarily with politics.

Generally Available Online Resources

Crocker Business Library

  • To find books on doing business in specific countries: go to HOMER and search for "doing business" and "country name." Many of these will be found in Doheny Library.  To find full-text books online, search eBrary.

  • Dun's Exporter's Encyclopedia: Summarizes everything that you need to know to do business in a given country from postal rates to government restrictions. Also contains a directory of business contacts in U.S. and market. (Reference Desk HF3011.E9)

  • PASSPORT books: In Business reference at call number HD58.7 you will find numerous pocket-sized books in a "Passport" series. This gives a snapshot of a country, including cultural norms.

  • The Global Etiquette Guide to...: a four-volume set of these books covers Africa & the Middle East, Asia, Europe, and Mexico & Latin America and can be found in Business Reference BJ 1838 .F. Each book covers country protocols and customs plus international business guidelines.

  • Statesman's Year-Book (Reference JA51.S797) 

  • World Trade Almanac (CD-ROM available at the Circulation Desk -- No. 182 Microdisk) Information on this CD is dated, but there is a good section on business culture.

  • General almanacs such as: Information Please Almanac (Reference Desk AY64.I55); World Almanac (Reference Desk AY67.N5W7)

Accounting Library

  • Price Waterhouse has a series of books devoted to doing business overseas. These are available at the circulation desk in the Accounting Library. The books deal primarily with accounting regulations and are not regularly updated.

Additional Generally Available Online Resources

Government Information/Country Statistics

Business Guidelines

International Banking Authorities: these entities contain regional reports on country finanances and trade

Trade Statistics

 Country Rankings/Indices

Risk Assessment

Business Etiquette

Currency Conversion

Industry Information

Overviews

USC Online Resources (Subscription-based)

  • Business & Company Resource Center contains Datamonitor market research and market share reports for many countries globally.
  • IBISWorld contains some global industry overviews and many reports on China industries.
  • Standard & Poor's NetAdvantage contains pre-defined industry overviews covering Asia, Europe and Latin America.
  • Investext Plus contains analyst reports on pre-defined industries which can be narrowed down to specific countries with a combined "Keyword" search.
  • Mint Global contains Datamonitor industry reports for many countries globally.
  • ISI Emerging Markets contains industry reports and statistics for select global economies.
  • STAT-USA/GLOBUS includes market research for select countries and industries in the National Trade Databank.
  • USATrade.gov has current market research and industry sector analyses. The site requires free registration or you can login using the library's email address: library@marshall.usc.edu 

Locating Industry Codes

Generally Available Online Resources

Crocker Business Library

  • Standard Industrial Classification Manual (Reference Desk HF1042. A55)

  • NAICS: North American Industry Classification System, United States 1997 (Reference Desk HF1042 .N67 1997)

  • Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States from the US International Trade Commission (Reference KF6652.U2)

  • Conversion of the tariff schedules of the United States into the nomenclature structure of the harmonized system: revised, showing administrative changes approved by the Trade Policy Staff Committee (Grand Depository KF6659.A385 1986)

  • Encyclopedia of Global Industries (available online through the Gale Virtual Reference Library's Business module)

  • Manufacturing Worldwide (Reference HD9720.1 M33)

VKC Library

  • [ISIC] International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (International Documents Room HA36. I57)

Statistics and Tables

USC Online Resources (Subscription-based)

  • STAT-USA/GLOBUS provides access to the National Trade Databank and import and export information from the federal government.

  • TableBase is an international database that specializes exclusively in tabular data dealing with companies, industries, products and demographics. Tables cover market share, rankings, forecasts, shipments, output, consumption, users, exports, imports, capacity and more. Tables are from a range of sources. More than 25,000 tables are added per year. NOTE: USC's subscription only allows one user at a time.

  • CIS Statistical Universe provided through Lexis/Nexis, indexes statistics in government publications, Web resources, trade publications, international organization's reports. This helps you find print resources in most cases.

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Generally Available Online Resources

  • FEDSTATS indexes U.S. government websites with statistics in their contents. Many government sites collect statistics for foreign countries.

  • International Trade Administration contains overviews of select industries that the U.S. government targets for export and other assistance.

  • United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) is an agency of the United Nations that works to promote productive employment, a competitive economy and a sound environment in developing countries and countries with economies in transition.

Crocker Business Library

  • Market Share Reporter (Reference Desk HF5410.W67)

  • European Marketing Data and Statistics (Reference HA1107.E87)

  • International Marketing Data and Statistics (Reference HA42.I56)

  • Global Competitiveness Report is issued annually by the World Economic Forum and contains indices, overviews, trends and country profiles. (Reference HF1414 .G5563)

  • Global Development Finance is a two-volume set issued annually by the World Bank and contains analysis and statistical tables plus country data. (Reference Desk HJ8011 .W92; also available electronically through HOMER)

VKC Library

  • Panorama of EC Industry (International Documents Room HC241. 2. P31)
  • International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics (Reference HC10.I673)

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Specific Industries

  • Energy: Country Analysis Briefs from the U.S. Energy Information Administration contains an overview on energy resources in the Middle East and select countries that have energy resources or energy usage that are of interest to policy makers in the United States.

  • Agriculture: Foreign Agricultural Service compiled by the U.S. Department of Agriculture has statistics on agricultural imports and exports.

  • Food: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations provides food statistics for specific countries.

  • Minerals: International Minerals Statistics and Information published by the U.S. Geological Survey, examines mineral production worldwide and provides profiles for individual countries.

Industry Associations

Industry associations are good sources of statistical and overview information. The following will help you find the association for your industry.

Crocker Business Library

  • Encyclopedia of Associations: International Organizations (Reference Desk: HS17.G3364)

  • World Chamber of Commerce Directory is issued annually (Reference HF294 .W75)

Articles

Articles are useful in finding trend and forecast information, as well as information about small or emerging industries.

USC Online Resources (Subscription-based)

  • Factiva offers the full text of The Wall Street Journal online, and searches the full text of many newspapers.

  • Lexis-Nexis Academic offers a good selection of foreign newspapers in English and other languages.

  • ISI Emerging Markets covers information on a variety of countries with links to newspapers, reports and other Internet-based resources on these countries.

  • ProQuest Direct (ABI/Inform) contains full text of articles in a wide variety of business, trade and scholarly journals.

  • Global Newsbank provides access to international news sources not included in other databases.

Generally Available Online Resources

Company Information

U.S. Public Companies

USC Online Resources (Subscription-based)

Generally Available Online Resources

Business School Network (HOH, BRI, ACC, JKP)

  • Worldscope (data up to 2006)

Crocker Business Library

  • Lexis/Nexis Corporate Affiliations is issued annually and lists public, private, and international companies (Reference HG4057 .A219)

  • Directory of American Firms Operating in Foreign Countries (Reference HG4538 A1.D5 2005)

  • Mergent Industrial Manual, Mergent Transportation Manual, Mergent Utilities Manual, Mergent OTC Manual and Mergent Unlisted OTC Manual. (Consult the Mergent index at the Reference Desk.)

Foreign Companies

USC Online Resources (Subscription-based)

  • Lexis-Nexis Academic: SEC 20F Reports 20Fs are filed with the Securities Exchange Commission by foreign companies that trade stock on U.S. exchanges. 20Fs are similar to the 10K form filed by US companies. Search the 'Business' module to find these filings.
  • Mint Global contains over 57 million public and private company listings
  • Business & Company Resource Center (search the Company module)
  • Hoover's
  • Mergent Online contains data on public companies internationally.
  • ISI Emerging Markets contains profile information for companies in select developing economies.
  • Factiva (search the Companies/Markets module) 

Generally Available Online Resources

ADRs
American Depositary Receipts are one way that U.S. investors can invest in foreign companies. ADRs are not shares of stock. They are held by a custodian for an investor. Even though they are listed as being traded on exchanges, they are not traded as stock on these exchanges. If you use their ticker symbols on web sites that give stock quotes, you will not get a price for them.

There are several sites devoted to ADRs. The companies listed at these sites will vary depending on whether the bank holds these ADRs.

Other sources of financial and stock price information

USC Online Resources (Subscription-based)

  • ISI Emerging Markets contains financial information and investment reports for companies in countries that the service covers. Also provides limited market data.

  • Lexis-Nexis Academic: find SEC filings and company reports under the Business module.

  • Crocker Library's Stock Information user guide.

Generally Available Online Resources

Business School Network (HOH, ACC, BRI, JKP)

  • Disclosure Worldscope contains detailed financial and business information on more than 12,000 companies in nearly 50 countries around the world.

Crocker Business Library

  • Mergent International Manual (Reference HG4509 .M66)

  • Principal International Businesses provides detailed information on 55,000 companies from 143 countries worldwide. (Reference: HD69.I7D86)

  • Who Owns Whom: North & South America (Reference HG4057 .A45) 

  • Who Owns Whom: Continental Europe (Reference HG4132 Z5.W5)

  • Who Owns Whom: UK & Ireland (Reference HG4135 Z5.W5)

  • World Market Share Reporter (Reference Desk: HF5410.M376)

Advertising and Marketing

Crocker Business Library

  • Dun's Exporters' Encyclopaedia (Reference Desk HF3011. E9)
  • Advertising Red Books (Reference Desk HF5805 S7)
  • European Advertising Marketing and Media Data (Grand Depository HF5808. E85.E877)

VKC Library

  • Editor and Publisher International Business (Reference PN4709.E4)

  • International and foreign-language newspapers

You can also treat advertising as an industry and look for information on advertising in a specific country as you would for any other industry. Other related industries are television, broadcasting and telecommunications.

Fee-Based Market Research

Fee-Based Online Resources

The following have searchable websites that lead you to more expensive published market research. They may also provide customized research.

Crocker Business Library

  • A number of companies conduct customized market research. Use the International Directory of Marketing Research Houses and Services, a.k.a. "The Green Book," to find these companies. (Reference HF5415.2.I53)

Country Information:
Comparative Statistics | Country Statistics | Overviews | Additional Data

Industry Information:
Overviews | Industry Codes | Statistics & Tables | Specific Industries | Industry Associations | Articles

Company Information:
U.S. Companies | Foreign Companies | Advertising & Marketing | Fee-Based Market Research

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