Comprehension and Discussion Questions. 1. What are the first steps in order to develop a proper export strategy?

1. What are the first steps in order to develop a proper export strategy?

2. What are the threats and difficulties of drifting into exporting?

3. Why do companies successful in exporting find their overseas trade the dominant part of their business?

4. The market and finance strategies are very important in boardroom discussions, aren’t they?

What is your responsibility in supporting export sale?
Why do you have to arrange meeting with the international division of your company’s bank?
What do you think of the importance of cash flow and loan in the process?
Do you need an expert specialist to evaluate the goods or the knowledge and skills of your staff?

Practical Task:

Read through the text, write out the Simple (Indefinite) and Passive Infinitives and translate the sentences into Russian.

Text III. EXPORT AND IMPORT OPERATIONS

Once of the biggest impediments to exporting is ignorance of foreign market opportunities.

Neophyte exporters often become discouraged or frustrated with the exporting process because they encounter many problems, delays, and pitfalls.

The way to overcome ignorance is to gather information. In the United States a number of institutions, most important of which is the U.S. Department of Commerce, can help firms gather information and in the matchmaking process. Export management companies can also help an exporter to identify export opportunities.

Many of the pitfalls associated with exporting can be avoided if a company hires an experienced export management company, or export consultant, and if it adopts the appropriate export strategy.

Firms engaged in international trade must do not business with people they cannot trust, people who may be very difficult to track down if they default on an obligation. Due to the lack of trust, each party to an international transaction has a different set of preferences regarding the configuration of the transaction.

The problems arising from lack of trust between exporters and importers can be solved by using a third party that is trusted by both-normally a reputable bank.

A letter of credit is issued by a bank at the request of an importer. It states the bank promises to pay a beneficiary, normally the exporter, on presentation of documents specified in the letter.

A draft is the instrument normally used in international commerce to effect payment. It is an order written by an exporter instructing an importer, or an importer’s agent, to pay a specified amount of money at a specified time.

Drafts are either sight drafts or time drafts. Time drafts are negotiable instruments. A bill of lading is issued to the exporter by the common carrier transporting the merchandise. It serves as a receipt, a contract, and a document of title. U.S. exporters can draw on two types of government-backed assistance to help finance their exports: loans from the Export-Import Bank and export credit insurance from the Foreign Credit Insurance Association (FCIA).

Counter trade includes a whole range of barter like agreements. It is primarily used when a firm exports to a country whose currency is not freely convertible and who may lack the foreign exchange reserves required to purchase the imports.

The main attraction of counter trade is that it gives a firm a way to finance an export deal when other means are not available. A firm that insists on being paid in hard currency may be at a competitive disadvantage vis-à-vis one that is willing to engage in counter trade. The main disadvantage of counter trade is that the firm may receive unusable or poor-quality goods that cannot be disposed of profitably.

Vocabulary notes

impediment –преграда, задержка

neophyte exporter –начинающий экспортёр

pitfall – ловушка

matchmaking process –выбор партнёра

international transaction –международная операция

letter of credit –акредитив

draft –переводной вексель

bill of lading –коносамент

merchandise –сбыт товара

government-backed assistance –помощь при поддержке правительства

beneficiary –владелец бенефиции или фонда