Austrade teams up with ITC to launch guide for trade representatives

Foreign trade representatives around the world now have access to updated guidelines on promoting trade abroad in line with national trade policy and export strategies, with the launch of the book, ‘Entering New Markets: A Guide for Trade Representatives’.

Austrade, the Australian Government’s trade and investment development agency, organized a launch in Sydney, Australia, for the ITC publication. The lead author for this guide, Lloyd Downey, is a former Austrade trade commissioner.

Austrade has placed the first major order of the publication which is for the use of its representatives. The guide takes into account the impact of globalization on trade and employment, changes in the multilateral trading system and the rise in bilateral and regional agreements. It provides a set of tools for trade support institutions tasked with supervising networks of foreign trade representatives.

‘The guide sets high standards for governance and for performance management, yet manages to be a very practical document that can be used by trade representatives in a wide variety of day-to-day situations,’ said ITC Executive Director Arancha González in a statement.

‘Foreign trade representatives balance competing demands and multiple reporting lines. This book advises on setting priorities for markets, industries and clients. It covers services such as export intelligence, trade displays, trade and buyer missions, investment promotion and market entry strategies. It also explains aspects of managing an office, building networks and using modern communications services,’ she added.

The first edition of the guide was published in 1973 and again in 1993. Research is based on ITC field work, as it is the only United Nations organization offering a training programme for trade representatives.