## Trade World Wisconsin newsletter -- I / 2006

**January 31, 2006**

# CONTENTS

\- Showtime Program Features One-on-One Meetings with International
Experts

\- Northeastern Wisconsin Global Trade Conference to be Held in Neenah
on April 11

\- Foreign Country Guides Available on Library of Congress Database

\- Selling to the United Nations

\- How to Keep Up with Foreign Trade Agreements

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**Showtime Program Features One-on-One Meetings with International
Experts**

Talk to the experts about your business and discover potential
international markets for your products and services at this year\'s
National Manufacturing Week, March 22-23, 2006, in Rosemont, Illinois.
The U.S. Commercial Service will have Senior Commercial Officers and
industry experts from China, Britain, Germany, Italy, Czech Republic,
Hungary, Poland, the Middle East, and the CAFTA-DR region who will be
attending the show and can talk with you about export opportunities in
their specific markets. Appointments are free of charge and can be
scheduled at your booth or at the International Business Center. A
limited number of time slots are available, so if you are attending
National Manufacturing Week and would like to meet with any of our
international specialists, please schedule an appointment now by filling
out the online registration form at: http://www.buyusa.gov/eme/nam.html.
If you have any questions, please contact the Milwaukee Export
Assistance Center at 414-297-3473 or send an e-mail to
Milwaukee.Office.Box@mail.doc.gov.

**SAVE THE DATE: Northeastern Wisconsin Global Trade Conference to be
Held in Neenah on April 11**

Please mark your calendars now for the 4th Annual Northeastern Wisconsin
Global Trade Conference which will take place this year on Tuesday,
April 11 in Neenah. This has become one of the largest international
trade conferences in Wisconsin and follows on previous successful events
held in Green Bay and Appleton. A full day of interesting and
informative speakers and sessions is being organized to help you grow
your international business and better understand the complexities of
global trade. Conference details are being finalized and a brochure
containing the full agenda and registration information will be
available soon. An additional announcement will be sent to recipients of
this newsletter in the near future.

**Foreign Country Guides Available on Library of Congress Database**

The Library of Congress has made available to the public an online
database of foreign country guides covering a wide range of nations.
Developed by the Library\'s Federal Research Division, the guides are
online versions of the hardbound books previously know as Country
Studies/Area Handbooks. The series currently covers 101 different
countries and regions, including many lesser developed areas. The
Country Studies Series presents a description and analysis of the
historical setting and the social, economic, political, and national
security systems and institutions of countries throughout the world.

The guides are in PDF-format and can be downloaded and printed directly
from the Library of Congress website. To access all of the reports
online, please go to http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/spguides.html
and click on the link for \"Country Studies.\"

**Article Gives Tips on Selling to the United Nations**

The United Nations organization is often overlooked as a potential
outlet for international sales. In 2004, the United Nations system
purchased over \$6 billion worth of goods and services in support of its
worldwide programs. The most effective way to approach selling to the
United Nations is to understand that despite the fact that UN
headquarters are in New York, the UN has the same status as a sovereign
country. Selling to the UN is therefore similar to selling to a foreign
government or any other public sector export market. Being a U.S.
company confers some strategic advantage as U.S. firms can easily visit
UN headquarters in New York City, but beyond that, competition for UN
contracts is global and very intense. Thomas Mottley, a Senior
International Trade Specialist at the Trenton, New Jersey Export
Assistance Center, has written an excellent article with tips on selling
to the United Nations, including useful links for additional
information. To read his article online, go to
http://www.buyusa.gov/arkansas/unselling.pdf.

**How to Keep Up with Foreign Trade Agreements**

On January 19, 2006, U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman and Omani
Minister of Commerce and Industry Maqbool bin Ali Sultan signed the
U.S.-Oman Free Trade Agreement. This is just the latest in a series of
foreign trade agreements that will eliminate tariffs and trade barriers
and expand commerce between the United States and various foreign
countries. Several important free trade agreements have already entered
into force, while others are in various stages of negotiation or
ratification. To better inform U.S. companies about free trade
agreements and their current status, the U.S. Department of Commerce has
published a dedicated website on this topic. For more information please
visit the USDOC Foreign Trade Agreements web page at
http://www.export.gov/fta/

This information is provided as a public service by the Milwaukee Export
Assistance Center, U.S. Department of Commerce. Reference to non-US
Government websites and resources is given for informational purposes
only.

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**HOW TO CONTACT US:**

U.S. Department of Commerce

Milwaukee Export Assistance Center

517 E. Wisconsin Avenue, Room 596

Milwaukee, WI 53202

Tel. 414-297-3473

Fax 414-297-3470

E-mail: Milwaukee.Office.Box@mail.doc.gov

Web: http://www.export.gov/cs/