Red-hot markets - isolating countries and product lines with high-growth potential - Brief Article

Nation's Business, May, 1996 by Laura M. Litvan

I recently started a business that exports U.S. products to South America and the Caribbean. So far, I have shipped everything from construction and food-service materials to motorcycles. I want to begin narrowing my business focus to countries and product lines with the greatest growth potential. How can I pinpoint them? D.M., Boca Raton, Fla.

Small businesses like yours that are entering the Latin American and Caribbean markets are finding that sales sizzle in Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic, says Bernie McDermott, an international-trade representative with the Florida Department of Commerce. In fact, Brazil has become the leading destination of exports shipped from your state. For the first three quarters of 1995, Florida-origin exports to Brazil reached $1.5 billion, a 73 percent increase over the similar period in 1994.

To find the strongest market sectors, start with the National Trade Data Bank, a collection of CD-ROMs containing U.S. government trade statistics. Updated monthly by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the CD-ROMs are available in about 1,000 U.S. libraries. For the location nearest you, plus some other resources, call the Commerce Department's trade hot line at 1-800-USATRADE (1-800-872-8723).

Two resources in this database could be especially useful. One, which could help you target your approach by country, is a series of U.S. Census Bureau reports detailing total U.S. exports to every nation for each of the past few years. The other resource is a collection of reports from the Commerce Department's International Trade Administration describing the best growth prospects in specific countries. The reports, listed under the heading of "Country Commercial Guides," provide a wealth of information to help make your company competitive.

For example, in just 20 minutes of exploring the ITA reports, we learned that:

* The best market to target in Brazil is telecommunications. The country's overall market for telecommunications equipment is the largest in Latin America and is expected to grow to about $15.2 billion by year's end, compared with $8.3 billion in 1994.

* In Argentina, travel and tourism is a hot market. So is the market for equipment to generate electrical power; much of the country's equipment now in use is outdated and must be replaced.

* In the Dominican Republic, sales of U.S.-made automobiles reached $563 million in 1994--the year that taxes on U.S. cars were reduced--and they are expected to climb to $750 million by the end of 1996.

Two final tips: Individual states' departments of commerce are excellent sources of export-promotion help. Call your department's office of Latin American affairs in Miami at (305) 870-5000. Also, see our report "At A Crossroads In Latin America," on Page 38 of the April issue.