How do I obtain market research for a specific country or product?

The U.S. Commercial Service Market Research Library (MRL) is the best way to obtain country and industry specific market research. The website provides access to the MRL, which contains more than 100,000 market reports, web sites, events, and trade directory listings.

In the MRL you can find the Country Commercial Guides (CCGs), which provide comprehensive views of a selected country's commercial environment, including, market, economic, and political conditions, best export sectors, trade regulations, investment incentives, finance techniques, upcoming trade events, marketing strategies, services for exporters, business travel tips, etc. In addition, CCGs include important government and trade association contacts in a given country. CCGs are also available free-of-charge through the MRL by selecting "Market Research Library” from within the text of the webpage, then select the desired country in the <country> field and “country commercial guide” in the <report type> field of the search engine.

For information on export and import statistics please click here.

There are also numerous services available from the International Trade Administration that enable you to obtain customized market research reports to help determine the overall marketability of your product, identify key competitors, and possible business partners, as well as learn about distribution networks. For more information, please contact your local Export Assistance Center. To locate the Export Assistance Center nearest you, go to http://www.buyusa.gov/home/us.html or call 1-800-USA-TRAD(E) to speak to a Trade Information Center (TIC) international trade specialist.

In addition, many countries maintain their own web pages with business information specific to that country. For a list of foreign embassies in the United States posted on the Internet, visit http://www.embassy.org.