How can international trade resources help companies evaluate markets and expand globally?

"1. Go to the Trade Compliance Center site at http://tcc.export.gov. Click on Foreign Trade Barrier Examples, and then search the reports. Pick a country that interests you from the index, and read the most current available reports for that country. Would this country be a good market for a small U.S. motor scooter manufacturer interested in expanding internationally? Why or why not? What are the main barriers to trade the company might face? 2. While still at the Trade Compliance Center site, http://tcc.export.gov, click on Trade Agreements and then List All Agreements. Select one that interests you, and summarize what you learn about it. 3. Review the historical data about exchange rates between the U.S. dollar and the Japanese yen available at http://www.x-rates.com. Pull up charts comparing the yen to the dollar for several years. List any trends you spot. What years would have been best for a U.S. company to enter the Japanese marketplace? Given current exchange rate conditions, do you think Japanese companies are increasing or decreasing their exporting efforts in the United States? 4. Visit Foreign Trade Online, http://www.foreign-trade.com, and browse through the resources of this international business-to-business trade portal. What types of information does the site provide? Which would be most useful to a company looking to begin exporting? To a company who already exports and wants to find new markets? Rate the usefulness of the site and the information it offers. 5. Go to http://www.fita.org, which is the Federation of International Trade Associations. Click on Really Useful Links for International Trade. Follow five of those links, and explain how they would help a U.S. manufacturer that wanted to go global. 6. Go to the World Trade Organization site at http://www.wto.org. Next, click on WTO News. Inform the class about current activities and actions at the WTO. 7. Go to http://www.worldbank.org and then to http://www.imf.org. Compare the types of information available on each website. Pick one example from each site, and report your findings to the class."