Multi-Regional Internet Business Resources

Chambers of Commerce

• World Network of Chambers of Commerce
  URL: http://www.worldchambers.com
  Publisher: International Chamber of Commerce, etc.

  Operated by three organizations, the International Bureau of Chamber of Commerce (IBCC)/International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIP), and the Global Management Center of the Trade Information Network of the UN/G77 Chambers of Commerce (GMC/TIN), the WNC is an online network of more than 10,000 chambers of commerce and trade promotion organizations throughout the world. WNC includes a database of products and services; national and international company profiles; chamber membership directories; and information on customs regulations and international and local business, trade and economic conditions.

• American Chambers of Commerce Abroad
  URL: http://www.uschamber.org/chambers/default
  Publisher: U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

  Available as a link from the American Chambers of Commerce home page. Includes links to the sites of approximately 90 American Chambers of Commerce Abroad (AmChams) in 81 countries. AmChams, "along with pursuing trade policy initiatives, ... make available publications and services, and sponsor a variety of business development programs. Through four regional organizations in Asia, Europe, the Gulf Countries, and Latin America/the Caribbean, the AmChams represent the concerns and interests of the business community at the highest levels of government and business in trade policy development."
  American Chambers of Commerce Abroad Home Page, September 7, 2002.

Companies

• Corporate Information
  URL: http://www.corporateinformation.com/
  Publisher: George Matthew Regnery

  Free registration is required to use this site, which contains annotated listings by region and country of Internet sites providing information on approximately 20,000 public and private companies. Includes experimental link to 15,000 research reports on publicly traded companies, free as of 10/15/1999, but may later be offered as a subscription product. Also offers a search engine described as searching an additional 300,000 company profiles at other sites.

• Kompass: the business to business search engine
  Full search results available only to subscribers.
  URL: http://www.kompass.com
  Publisher: Kompass

  Database of 1.5 million companies in 66 countries, representing 23 million products and services; also included are 2.7 million executives' names, and 400,000 trade and brand names. Users may search by company name, product, and/or country. Search results include company name, address, telephone and fax numbers. Registered users and subscribers may obtain additional information, including business hours, activities, brief financial information, year established, number of employees, executives' names, trade names, export areas, and legal form. Subscribers may search by additional criteria in the database, including Kompass category number, and limit searches to exporters, importers, distributors, producers, sub-regions of countries, etc.

Country Profiles

• Background Notes.
  URL: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/
  Publisher: U.S. State Department

  Provides current information describing foreign countries and geographic entities, as well as selected international organizations. Describes people, culture, geography, history, government, economy, and political conditions plus travel tips.

• Country Commercial Guides (released prior to January 20, 2001)
  URL: http://www.state.gov/www/about_state/business/com_guides/index.html
  Publisher: U.S. State Department

  For updated information search Market Research Reports (Non-Agricultural) at http://www.export.gov/marketresearch.html

  According to the Country Commercial Guides Home Page, these guides are prepared each year by U.S. embassies with the assistance of several U.S. government agencies and "present a comprehensive look at countries' commercial environments, using economic, political and market analysis." Topics covered include Economic Trends, Political Environment, Marketing US Products and Services, Leading Sectors for US Exports and Investments, Trade Regulations, Investment Climate, Trade and Project Financing, Business Travel and Country Data.

• Country Reports On Economic Policy and Trade Practices (released prior to January 20, 2001.)
  URL: http://www.state.gov/www/issues/economic/trade_reports/
  Publisher: U.S. State Department

  For updated information, see U. S. Congress. Joint Committee Print. 107-53. Country Reports On Economic Policy and Trade Practices. 107th Congress. 2nd session. January 2002. http://wwwa.house.gov/international_relations/107/77259.pdf

  Modeled on the U.S. Department of State annual reports on country human rights practices, the reports are intended to provide a single, comparative analysis of the economic policies and trade practices of countries with which the United States has significant economic or trade relationships. Because of the increasing importance of, and interest in, trade and economic issues, these reports are prepared to assist members of Congress in considering legislation in the areas of trade and economic policy."
  County Reports Home Page, 10/13/1999

• Country Studies
  URL: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cshome.html
  Publisher: Library of Congress

  "A continuing series of books prepared by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress under the Country Studies/Area Handbook Program sponsored by the Department of the Army. This online series presently contains studies of 100 countries.Most books in the series deal with a particular foreign country, describing and analyzing its political, economic, social, and national security systems and institutions, and examining the interrelationships of those systems and the ways they are shaped by cultural factors."
  Library of Congress Country Studies Home Page, 10/13/1999.

• The Economist Intelligence Unit
  URL: http://www.eiu.com/
  Publisher: Economist Information Unit

  This site is provided by the EIU, an information provider for companies establishing and managing operations across national borders anywhere in the world. This site features the latest political, economic and business environment analysis on more than 100 countries. These reports, are accessible under the heading "EIU's Latest" through a free registration process. Additional databases, including country profiles, risk reports, and intelligence information, are accessible through a fee-based subscription.

• World Factbook
  URL: http://http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html
  Publisher: U.S. Central Intelligence Agency

  Issued in printed, Internet and CD-ROM versions, the World Factbook, provides brief information on the geography, people, government, economy, communications, transportation, and military organization, along with a brief overview of transnational and other current issues for each of the world's independent states as well as for dependencies and areas of special sovereignty.

Currency Converters / Exchange Rates

• Bloomberg Website: Market Data: Currencies.
  URL: http://www.bloomberg.com/markets/currencies/fxc.html
  Publisher: Bloomberg

  In addition to providing tables of current exchange rates by countries, it is also possible to calculate the exchange rate of a specific currency in relation to other currencies by region. Also includes links to related financial information, including U.S. Initial public offerings, bond and U.S. Treasury yields, Standard & Poor's 500 Index, U.S. interest rates, and selected world indices.

• Foreign exchange rates..
  URL: http://www.ny.frb.org/markets/foreignex.html
  Publisher: Federal Reserve Bank of New York

  Provides links to the daily 10:00 a.m. and 12 noon midpoint between buying and selling rates from the New York Interbank market for the following currencies: the Euro, U.K. Pound Sterling, Canadian Dollar, Swiss Franc, Japanese, Yen, Swedish Krona, and the Norwegian and Danish Krones, Links to the International Monetary Fund page for additional rates.

• Interactive Daily Table [Currency Converter]
  URL: http://www.oanda.com/convert/fxdaily
  Publisher: OANDA, Inc.

  Provides exchange rates for approximately 165 currencies. Offers a choice of Interbank (official) rates, typical credit card rates, typical cash rates, and other selected margins. Daily rates for approximately the last five years may also be searched; the exact years available depends upon the currencies selected. Links to currency news are included; and currency forecasts are offered on a fee basis. Search instructions are available in seven languages: English, German, French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, and Swedish.

• Pacific Exchange Rate Service (Policy Analysis Computing & Information Facility in Commerce)
  URL: http://pacific.commerce.ubc.ca/xr/
  Publisher: Werner Antweiler. University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.

  Designed as a repository of historic exchange rates for economists and other researchers, this site contains historical statistics for 69 currencies. Many series date from 1991, although a few begin in 1971, while other series do not begin until 1996. A "Data Availability Chart" indicates the exact years available for each currency. A supplementary table of current exchange rates for approximately 200 countries, updated twice daily, is also available, as are a number of links to related information, including information on the Euro, and an explanation of the International Monetary Fund's Special Drawing Rights.

• The Universal Currency Converter(TM)
  URL: http://www.xe.com/ucc/
  Publisher: Xenon Laboratories Incorporated

  Offered in both a "short" version and a fuller version which provides up-to-the minute exchange rates on 180 currencies in over 250 geographical locations, the site also includes links to historical currency tables for the most recent five years, special travel expenses and credit card charges calculators, and an interactive "Export Pricing System," designed to help exporters to both negotiate a price in their foreign customer's currency and to confirm the value of funds to be received in their own currency. A link to the ISO 4217 Currency List of currency names and their three-letter currency codes as specified by the International Standards Organization's ISO 4217 specification is also included. Instructions are available in English, French, and Swedish.

Embassies

• Foreign Embassies and Consulates in the United States
  URL: http://dir.yahoo.com/Government/U_S__Government/Embassies_and_Consulates/
  Publisher: Yahoo

  Links to the web sites of foreign embassies and consulates in the United States. For some, includes a one line annotation describing particular features of a site.

• U.S. Embassies Abroad
  URL: http://usembassy.state.gov/
  Publisher: United States Information Agency.

  Links to the web sites of U.S. embassies and Information Services abroad. Also includes links to web sites for U.S. Missions to the European Union, NATO, OSCE, and to the United Nations in Geneva and New York.

• U.S. Missions Online
  URL: http://www.state.gov/www/regions_missions.html
  Publisher: United States Department of State

  The official U.S. State Department listing of diplomatic and consular posts around the world which maintain web sites, including missions to the European Union, the United Nations in New York and Geneva, NATO, OAS, OSCE, and to various international organizations in Vienna. Also includes a link to the web version of the print publication, "Key Officers of Foreign Service Posts: Guide for Business Representatives."

• Yahoo! Embassies and Consulates
  URL: http://dir.yahoo.com/Government/Embassies_and_Consulates/
  Publisher: Yahoo

  Arranged by country, this page links to the web sites of foreign missions to the country in question. Coverage is spotty and varies considerably depending on the country.

International Trade

• Foreign Trade Statistics
  http://www.census.gov:80/ftp/pub/foreign-trade/www/
  Publisher: U.S. Bureau of Census. Foreign Trade Division.

  This site provides the U.S. government's primary source of foreign trade data. Features country by 1-digit SITC commodity trade data from 1996 to 1998, schedule B keyword search, U.S. exporting company profiles, trade balances with international trading partners, and press releases. An alphabetical country index from Ato Z allows quick access to specific country data.

• Trade Compliance Center
  URL: http://www.tcc.mac.doc.gov/
  Publisher: US International Trade Administration

  For each country listed, includes, if available, text of recent National Trade Estimate Reports, Trade Policy Review Summaries, Country Commercial Guides, and the Country Reports on Economic Policy and Trade Practices.

• STAT-USA
  URL: http://www.stat-usa.gov/
  Publisher: U.S. Department of Commerce

  This subscription service provides a wide array of economic, business, and international trade information produced by the U.S. government, including daily trade leads, international market research, country analyses, and import and export statistics. May be searched by keyword, country, or product. Available in many U.S. federal depository libraries.

Legal Resources

• GLIN (Global Legal Information Network)
• 
  URL: http://www.loc.gov/law/glin/
  Publisher: Library of Congress. Law Library.

  "The Global Legal Information Network (GLIN) is a database of
  laws, regulations, and other complementary legal sources.
  The documents included in the database are contributed by
  the governments of the members from the original, official texts
  which are deposited, by agreement of the members, in a
  server presently located at the Library of Congress of the
  United States of America. Anyone may sign on to the system
  as a guest and view the summaries and citation information for
  the laws and legal writings in the database. Searches can be
  done by jurisdiction, subject, date, or type of legal instrument,
  or by a combination of these elements. Subject searches are
  done through a dedicated list of terms, collected in the
  GLIN thesaurus. The summaries are written in English; in some
  cases a summary in a second language has been appended.
  Access to the full texts of the documents is restricted to
  members."
  GLIN Home Page, June 6, 2003

International Postal / Telephone Codes

• International Calling Codes
  URL: http://www.the-acr.com/codes/cntrycd.htm
  Publisher: American Computer Resources, Inc.

  Includes both Country and City Calling Codes. Instructions are provided for placing calls from the United States.

• International Dialing Codes
  URL: http://kropla.com/dialcode.htm
  Publisher: World Wide Construction Site

  Presents in table format a list of countries with their international dialing codes, along with links to city codes within countries. Also included are International Direct Dialing (IDD) and National Direct Dialing (NDD) prefixes, as well as a "reverse" look-up facility allowing users determine the country of origin for an international phone number.

• International Postal Union
  URL: http://www.upu.int/
  Publisher: Universal Postal Union

  Site includes links to "Addressing formats" and "Postcodes" for the UPU member countries. Under "Addressing Formats" users can find the address and telephone number of the postal authority for the country, a list of the major administrative sub-divisions and a description of the postal addressing system for the country, along with a sample address, and a description of the structure of the postal code of the country, if used. Under "Postcodes" users can link to country web sites providing look-up services and/or other postal code information for the country.

Statistics

• International Data Base (IDB)
  URL: http://www.census.gov:80/ipc/www/idbnew.html
  Publisher: U.S. Bureau of the Census

  "The International Data Base (IDB) is a computerized data bank containing statistical tables of demographic, and socio-economic data for 227 countries and areas of the world."
  IDB Home Page, October 13, 1999

• Foreign Trade Statistics
  http://www.census.gov:80/ftp/pub/foreign-trade/www/
  Publisher: U.S. Bureau of Census. Foreign Trade Division.

  This site provides the U.S. government's primary source of foreign trade data. Features country by 1-digit SITC commodity trade data from 1996 to 1998, schedule B keyword search, U.S. exporting company profiles, trade balances with international trading partners, and press releases. An alphabetical country index from Ato Z allows quick access to specific country data.

• STAT-USA
  URL: http://www.stat-usa.gov/
  Publisher: U.S. Department of Commerce

  This subscription service provides a wide array of economic, business, and international trade information produced by the U.S. government, including daily trade leads, international market research, country analyses, and import and export statistics. May be searched by keyword, country, or product. Available in many U.S. federal depository libraries.

• United Nations. Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Statistics Division
  URL: http://www.un.org/Depts/unsd/
  Publisher: United Nations. Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

  This site provides a wide range of statistical outputs and services worldwide. It is well-organized and offers statistics under the following headings: Statistics and Indicators, Statistical Methods, International Co-operation Statistics, as well as Sources and References which link to national statistics and listings of Internet sites of national and international statistical services.

• IMF: Dissemination Standards Bulletin Board
  URL: http://dsbb.imf.org/
  Publisher: International Monetary Fund

  This site provides key information about economic and financial data disseminated by IMF member countries that subscribe to the IMF's Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS). Statistical information can be accessed in two links: Information by Country and Information by Data Category.

Stock Exchanges

• Stock Exchanges Worldwide Links
  URL: http://www.tdd.lt/slnews/Stock_Exchanges/Stock.Exchanges.html
  Publisher: Aldas Kirvaitis, metasite.net

  Worldwide listing by continent of stock exchanges and other exchange resources, including futures exchanges and grain exchanges.

• Yahoo! Exchanges
  URL: http://dir.yahoo.com/Business_and_Economy/Business_to_Business/Financial_Services/Exchanges/Stock_Exchanges/
  Publisher: Yahoo

  Alphabetical listing of world stock exchanges. For some, includes a one line annotation.

Weather

• Yahoo! Weather
  URL: http://weather.yahoo.com/
  Publisher: Yahoo

  The site, which may be searched by region and/or city, offers a brief summary of current weather conditions world wide, in addition to providing four day forecasts. Users may choose to display temperatures in either centigrade or Fahrenheit. Includes links to U.S. National Weather Service Severe Weather and Forecast Advisories, Weather maps, and Weather news.

This page was created under the auspices of the Business Collections and Services Working Group of the Library of Congress and is maintained by the Business Reference Section of the Science, Technology, and Business Division.  Links last checked December 2, 2003.