INTERNATIONAL INFORMATION IN GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS The United States government publishes many items and series which can be helpful in research about foreign countries. Whether basic facts are needed or translations in a highly specialized or technical area, government publications have much to offer. The publications discussed below fall into five categories: A. Ready reference for quick facts about a country, B. Comprehensive reports and books in which subjects are developed and analyzed more fully, C. Bibliographies D. Translations E. Business information sources. All of these publications have specific uses and in doing research about a particular country or area, one may need to use several or all of them. A. READY REFERENCE SOURCES 1. World Factbook (Ref G 122 U56a, older editions in the stacks, also on the National Trade Data Bank CD-ROM) Annual. Presents information similar to that in almanacs. Short entries arranged by country name describe the people, water, land, government, economy, defense. All information is brief, but current. A outline map of each country is included. 2. Background Notes (S1.123: cutter) Irregular. More detailed information than the World Factbook. The entries resemble encyclopedia entries. Sections include people, history, geography, economy, political conditions, foreign relations. A short reading list indicates sources for further information. Maps show the country in context of its neighbors and in greater detail than the World Factbook. 3. Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments (PrEx3.11/2: nos.) Updated bimonthly. Names of individuals in high level offices in each country. Older editions in Documents Microfiche with the same call number can be useful for determining officials back to 1978. 4. Foreign Consular Offices in the United States (S1.69/2: year) Updated semi-annually. Contains names, addresses, and phone numbers of each official foreign office in the United States, together with its jurisdiction. These offices are helpful in obtaining information on trade regulations, restictions, licenses, quotas, or suggestions as to consumer needs and preferences. 5. Key Officers of Foreign Service Posts: Guide for Business Representatives (S1.40/5: year) Updated three times a year. Lists key officers at Foreign Service posts--the Chiefs and Deputy Chiefs of Missions, the senior officers of the political, economic, commercial, and consular sections of the post and the agricultural officers. It lists all embassies, consulates general, and consulates. B. MORE COMPREHENSIVE SOURCES If further amplification of an area such as history, politics, or culture is needed, one of the following sources could prove useful. 1. Post Reports (S1.127: cutter) Irregular. Background Notes and Post Reports are both issued by the State Department and contain similar categories of information. Post Reports were developed for employees of the State Department to acquaint them with living abroad. They contain useful information on travel and culture, and include a recommended reading list which has offerings of fiction, history, culture, and politics. 2. Pocket Guide to (Country) (D2.14:PG-No.) Prepared by American Forces Information Service, these guides cover selected regions and countries where U.S. Armed Forces are stationed. Coverage includes a brief history and information on local customs, travel, food, and language. 3. Country Studies (formerly, Area Handbooks) (located in Joyner Stacks; search LS2000 by series title, Area Handbooks, to find the call number for a particular country). Updated irregularly. Provide in-depth coverage of a single country. These publications are book-length with chapters on history, society, environment, ecomony, national security, government, and politics. All include maps and photographs. An appendix presents information in tabular form and each volume concludes with a lengthly bibliography. C. BIBLIOGRAPHIES Subject Bibliographies (Doc Ref GP3.22/2: nos.) These bibliographies provide an overview of current government documents concerning a particular region such as Africa or the Middle East. An index to the bibliographies is also provided. Country Studies, Background Notes, and Post Reports also include bibliographies. D. TRANSLATIONS Translations yield valuable information because they provide a unique perspective often not available in the English-language press. 1. Federal Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) (Documents Microfiche PrEx7.10:FBIS-letters-year- nos.) Provides translations and analyses of news broadcasts, newspapers, periodicals, and government statements. Daily reports series cover Asia and the Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, East Asia, Near East and South Asia, People's Republic of China, Soviet Union, South Asia, Latin America, Eastern Europe and Western Europe. A monthly table of contents is issued in microfiche and filed with the reports and serves as the only subject access to the reports. 2. Joint Publications Research Service (JPRS) (Microforms Department, older ones on microfilm JPRS- country-reel no. and newer ones are on microfiche J668-no.) JPRS is the largest source of English language translations from countries all over the world. It covers Eastern Europe, Latin America, Near East and Africa, USSR, Japan, China, and Asia. Orginally it was produced for government agencies needing translations, but it has become an important source of social science and scientific information particularly for researchers interested in Third World countries and countries which have been communist- aligned. Indexes are available for 1957 to the present. Transdex (Doc Ref Z 7403 c38) is the current index and is available for the years 1970 to the present. In the Microforms Department (Microfiche J688), annual cumulations for 1975-1987 are available. E. BUSINESS INFORMATION SOURCES 1. Africa: Guide to Business Finance for U.S. Firms (C61.8:Af8) Describes sources of financing of African trade and investment for U.S. exporters and investors in Africa. The information is divided into sections concerning U.S. programs, multilateral programs, foreign bilateral programs, African development corporations, and commercial banks. 2. Basic Guide to Exporting (HF1009.6 B38) 1986. General guide to exporting explaining what potential exporters need to know before attempting to sell such as how to do market research, channels of distribution, export preparation, and how to conduct business travel. Sections are also included concerning making the sale and responsibilities after the sale. 3. CBI Business Bulletin (C61.35: nos.) (older ones in Documents Microfiche with the same call no.) Monthly. Published by the Caribbean Basin Information Center. This publication answers questions about trade and investment in Caribbean countries. It lists investment opportunites and consulting services available in the area and gives area news briefs of events that affect trade and investment and a business Calendar of Events. 4. Country Market Survey International Marketing Information Series. (C61.9: letters-nos-year) Irregular. Each report covers a particular market in a specific country such as sporting goods and recreational equipment in Saudi Arabia. Information in given in narrative and tabular form. Demand, imports, competitive assessment, marketing practices, trade regulations, basic economic indicators, and lists of useful addresses are given. These surveys are also included in the National Trade Data Bank CD- ROM. 5. Export Briefs (Documents Microfiche A67.40/2) Weekly. News publication listing agricultural products wanted by foreign buyers. It also includes market briefs for specific commodities in specific countries. 6. Foreign Direct Investment in the United States, Operations of U.S. Affiliates of Foreign Companies (C59.20: year) Annual. Lists individual foreign direct investment transactions in the U.S. The listings are arranged by the primary industrial classification of the U.S. company owned or controlled by foreign investors, by country of the investors, and by state location of the investment. A brief overview is included. 7. Foreign Economic Trends and their Implications for the U.S. (C61.11: cutter) Reports by American embassy personnel are issued annually or semi-annually for over 100 selected countries. The first page of each report is a table of key economic indicators, income, production, national accounts, employment, balance of payments, and trade balance. The text summarizes economic trends and analyzes their implications for U.S. foreign trade. 8. Foreign Labor Trends (L29.16: cutter) Reports are updated every two or three years. Arranged alphabetically by country, these reports describe and analyze labor developments, labor- management relations, trade unions, employment and unemployment, wages and working conditions, labor and government, labor administration and legislation, training, labor and politics, labor migration, and international labor activities. A list of key labor indicators is included in most of the reports. 9. Importing into the United States (T17.17: year) Annual. (formerly Exporting to the United States) Outlines procedures for importing into the United States giving essential importing requirements for entry, invoices, marking of merchandise, and assessment of duty. An example of many of the forms currently in use is provided. 10. International Business Practices (Doc Ref HF 1411 I57 1993) provides the international business executive with information about operating in other countries. Chapters cover financing, export management, foreign sales corporations, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and drafting international sales, agent, and distributor agreements. Charts of the 117 markets indicate the international organizations and conventions of which the countries are a part. For each country, information concerning business organizations, exporting, commercial policies, foreign investment, intellectual property rights, taxation, regulatory agencies, and useful contacts is given by country. 11. Latin America Trade Review (C61.38: year) (older ones in Documents Microfiche with same call no.) Annual. Regional overview and analysis of major trends in trade with Latin American countries and description of trade situation of each country. Appendices give statistics of imports and exports on a world-wide level and with the United States. 12. National Trade Data Bank CD-ROM (Doc Ref HF 3003 U82x) Monthly. Contains tables and time series from about 15 federal agencies and includes the Foreign Traders Index which gives company name, products, agents, banks, service firms. From the 15 agencies are included such items as the World Factbook, Handbook on Economic Statistics, Trade Projections Report to Congress, U.S. International Transactions, Business America, International Market Research, and U.S. Industrial Outlook. 13. Overseas Business Reports (C61.12: nos.) Revised irregularly. Reports cover individual countries or world regions. Each profile provides a background and basic overview of the economic situation. Topics covered in more detail include transportation, taxation, advertising, distribution and sales channels, trade, investment, licensing information, and credit and monetary policy in the country or region. 14. Sources of Information from Abroad (Doc Ref JF 1521 S67) is a country by country listing of where to get access to public records such as corporations and company records, land titles, court records as well as birth, marriage, and death records and wills, patents, copyright, and bank and credit information. 15. U.S. Direct Investment Abroad: Operations of U.S. Parent Companies and Their Foreign Affiliates (C59.20/2: Year) Annual. Covers the financial structure and operation of nonbank U.S. companies and their foreign affiliates and majority-owned U.S. affiliates. Statistics of assets, income, employment, trade, and sales are given. 16. U.S. Exports of Merchandise CD-ROM (Doc Ref HF3003 U81x) Monthly. Gives export statistics of shipments of domestic and foreign merchandise from the U.S. customs districts. Statistics are given concerning the quantity, value, and shipping weight by country of destination, customs district of exportation, and method of transportation. Data is given for the month and year-to-date. 17. U.S. Foreign Trade Highlights (C61.28/2: year) Annual. Gives an overview of U.S. trade for the year. Statistics are given for total exports and imports, trade balances, top trade partners, surplus and deficit countries in U.S. trade, several time series of manufactures and agricultural trade, and for U.S. commodity trade by geographic region. 18. U.S. Imports of Merchandise CD-ROM (Doc Ref 3005 U81x) Monthly. Gives import statistics of shipments of merchandise into the U.S. customs territories. Statistics are given for net quantity, value data, values and shipping weights for vessel and air shipments in terms of commodity, by country of origin, by customs district of entry, by customs district of unlading, and by rate provision. Data are provided for the month and year-to-date. 19. World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (A93.29/3: nos.) Monthly. Gives analysis of major crops, production, grain stocks, or planting intentions reports. Statistics are by crops, covering balance of supply and demand for one season. BUSINESS PERIODICALS 20. AgExporter (formerly Foreign Agriculture) (Current Periodicals, older issues HD 1401 F65) Monthly. Provides information for businesses who sell U.S. farm products overseas such as overseas markets, buying trends, new competitors and products, and overseas promotional activities. 21. Business America: The Magazine of International Trade (Current Periodicals, older issues HF 1 B863 and microforms) Twice per month. Reports on domestic business, economic affairs, over- seas trade, worldwide business opportunities, foreign industrial production and lists world commercial holidays. It is included in the National Trade Data Bank CD-ROM. June D. Parker, East Carolina University Revised, May 1994