International Data Base (IDB)

The International Data Base (IDB) is a computerized source of demographic and socioeconomic statistics for 228 countries and areas of the world. The IDB combines data from country sources (especially censuses and surveys) with IPC’s estimates and projections to provide information dating back as far as 1950 and as far ahead as 2050. Because the IDB is maintained at IPC as a research tool in … [ Read more ]

Country Analysis Briefs

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) offers free country briefs. Information is focused on energy statistics but also offers overviews on the country, its national economy, and environmental information.

Everything International

Everything International (Ev-In) is intended as an electronic library of resources for faculty, students, and practitioners in the field of international business. Hyperlinks to public and private sources are listed with perceived usefulness being the only criteria used in selecting sites.

World Bank Privatization Database

This site provides information on more than 9,000 privatization transactions in developing countries from 1988 to 2003. Search transactions by country, region or sector for a particular time period or for the entire period covered in the database.

BusinessCulture.com

This site is a source for country-specific reports on business customs, etiquette, cross-cultural communication, proper gifts, negotiating tactics, business culture, manners, business entertainment and much more.

Editor’s Note: it seems all of the material is fee-based…

Industry, Trade and the Economy: Data and Analysis

OTEA conducts a comprehensive program of data development, dissemination, and research and analysis on international and domestic trade and investment issues to support trade promotion and trade policy responsibilities of Trade Development, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce and U.S. Government organizations and officials. This site makes the results of that work available to the public.

Commanding Heights: The Battle for the World Economy

The purpose of this site, which is a companion to a Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) series, “is to promote better understanding of globalization, world trade and economic development, including the forces, values, events, and ideas that have shaped the present global economic system.” The site features the complete six-hour television program, a timeline from 1911 through 2003, dozens of country reports, material about key individuals, … [ Read more ]

NationMaster.com

The Australian site takes material from the such sources as the CIA World Factbook, United Nations, World Health Organization, World Bank, World Resources Institute, UNESCO, UNICEF and OECD to generate material that allows users to compare countries based on many different statistics. Features information about specific countries, as well as tables on subjects ranging from agriculture to transportation. Searchable. Some material only available to subscribers. … [ Read more ]

BBC News Country Profiles

Full profiles provide an instant guide to history, politics and economic background of countries.
They also include audio and video clips from the BBC archives.

Editor’s Note: see a similar resource, the CIA World Fact Book

International Trade Statistics 2003

In today’s global economy, companies are increasingly looking outside national borders for new markets. Answering such questions as “Which Asian country is the largest exporter of commercial services?” or “Is the market growing for agricultural products in Africa?” can be essential for companies thinking of expanding into other parts of the world.

International Trade Statistics 2003 by the World Trade Organization is an authoritative source for … [ Read more ]

Trade Agreements Database and Archive

The complex and far-flung world of trade agreements has just been made much simpler, thanks to Dartmouth’s Tuck Center for International Business (CIB) Trade Agreements Database and Archive. This is an updated collection of bilateral and regional free trade agreements and customs union agreements, most of which have been notified to the World Trade Organization. The archive section contains full texts of 164 agreements, that … [ Read more ]

USITC Interactive Tariff and Trade DataWeb

The USITC Trade DataWeb is a menu-driven wizard for creating queries about current or historical U.S. trade by country and product. The wizard allows searching by HTS (Harmonized Tariff Schedule), SIC Code, SITC Code, or NAIC Code. (If you are unsure of where to start, the USITC site has an end use description lookup page.)

Once you choose a product list, you can drill down to … [ Read more ]

The World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY)

The World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY) is the world’s most renowned and comprehensive annual report on the competitiveness of nations, ranking and analyzing how a nation’s environment sustains the competitiveness of enterprises.

Published annually since 1989, the IMD yearbook examines the relationship between a country’s national environment and the wealth-creation process, ranking “the ability of nations to provide an environment that sustains the competitiveness of enterprises.”

The … [ Read more ]

Portals to the World

For the global executive (or domestic executive with a global business, for that matter) the Web is a great resource for finding country information. One of the strongest resources is the Library of Congress Web site’s “Portals to the World” section, which offers links to a wide range of information on dozens of countries, with topics including education, embassies, geography and environment, national security, and … [ Read more ]

Finding Tariff and Tax Information

Follow the four step guide at this site to determine tariffs and taxes levied on U.S. products and services exported to other countries.

globalEDGE

globalEDGE provides a global business knowledge Web portal that connects international business professionals worldwide to a wealth of information, insights, and learning resources on global business activities. It serves as a gateway to specialized knowledge on countries, cross-border business transactions, and cross-cultural management, developing virtual communities to connect on common areas of interest such as international business, global supply-chain management, e-commerce and knowledge management. Prime … [ Read more ]

Global Connector

Published by the Global Business Information Network (GBIN) at the University of Indiana, this portal opens on to current Web sources of global business information. The multi-layered information network is based on a drill-down menu that offers site visitors the choice of using either an industry type or a country as the starting point for information retrieval. Industry coverage is extensive and well-designed subject hierarchies … [ Read more ]

TechnoServe

TechnoServe helps entrepreneurial men and women in poor rural areas of the developing world to build businesses that create income, opportunity and economic growth for their families, their communities and their countries.

If you:
– travel to the developing world and find the poverty unconscionable
– do business in Africa or Latin America and want to have a positive impact
– are an … [ Read more ]

Competitive Fitness of Global Firms

Professor Jean-Claude Larreche of INSEAD heads an initiative that effectively quantifies the Competitive Fitness of Global Firms. He has published a report each year since 1998, providing an evaluation of the business capabilities of firms among the 500 largest in North America and Europe. Instead of relying on the short-term, financial information that is so easy to find on business corporations, his report delves deeper … [ Read more ]

Country & Industry Surveys on FT.com

The Financial Times publishes approximately 240 surveys annually. Topics include financial markets, global industries, business management and developed and emerging countries. These are overview surveys written by FT reporters, not pages and pages of statistics. A PDF of all surveys published since 1994 is also available.