Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-06-02
AMERICAN SCOUTS PIERCE
TRADE FRONTIERS ABROAD
Many Thrilling Experiences Recorded
in History of Service by American
Exports Promoting Commerce.


4 to assist American exporters in
building up their foreign trade.
Ten Offices were opened in the fiscal
year 19l4-l5 in as many strategic CEN
ters of foreign trade. Today that
organization. the Foreign Service of the
Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Com
merce, has Offices in go cities, with a
staff Of more than SOC men and women.
AS Secretary of Commerce, Herbert
G. Hoover played an important part in
building I'D this worldwide organiZa-
ton. And now that he is President.
Washington expects to see still fur
Their expansion in the activities of this
great overseas organization, which is
working side by side with American
exporters IN winning new markets be-
yond our borders.
Exports Called Balance Wheel.
"Our exports" declared Mr. Hoover.
''are the great balance wheel for our
production. Exports are vital 10 The
Sterilization OF our industries OF price
levels. of wages and employment" AS
its main objective the Foreign Service
of the bureau aims to help the Amert-
can business man hold the ground
that he has already gained and to pre-
pare him to meet the foreign competl-
ton which he must meet if he Is TO
increase his foreign sales.
Expansion in our foreign trade is one
Of the major economic policies Of the
present administration. and as that ex-
pansion proceeds greater and greater
responsibilities will be placed upon our
trade ambassadors
These trade promotive Offices render
thousand and one services to the
American business man. Last year, for
example, $4,000 lists of dealers were
furnished to American business men to
1,a1 fI,Aiy- lyafe
overseas Offices of the bureau aim to
establish connections between our ex-
porters and reliable agents or proSpec-
tive purchasers abroad.
Distributes Consular Reports.
Under the law the Bureau of Foreign
and Domestic Commerce is made tho
distributing agency for consular reports.
so that in addition to its own staff
abroad the bureau has the benefit of
the services OF 400 or more consulS of
the Department of State scattered at
every. important city throughout the
world.
On April 4, 1924, former President
Coolidge issued one of the most i'm
portant executive orders ever issued
from the point of view of the Amer
lean exporter. Under this order there
was to be a free exchange of informa-
ton among all agents of the Govern
ment in foreign lands The order like
wise provided for bimonthly confer
ences to be attended by all Foreign
Service officers. and recommended that
every effort be made TO eliminate
duplication of work
Many channels disseminate the in
formation thus gained. The bureau
maintains close contact with all repu-
! table export houses in the United
States, and gives those concerns
through segregated information serv-
j ice reports bearing upon their special
export interests. 1t issues many pub
/ LEGATIONS including Commerce Re-
ports" Specialists are in charge of dis
! tributing the information on each
group OF exports. Agricultural and
! forestry exports, for example, bulk
large in the total.
: SO the bureau maintains in its food
i stuffS division corps of experts some
of them farmers and others trained in
the business aspects of agriculture, who
direct the work of gathering and dis
! seminating information on conditions
in farm product markets throughout
the world. Resident officers abroad
! send in hundreds of reports each year
on agricultural products and condi-
/ tions, and what is true of agriculture
holds also for nearly every other field
Of exports.
Specific Opportunities Listed.
Commerce Reports" carries weekly
announcements of specific opportuni-
ties for the sale of American goods
abroad. The names and addresses of
foreign importers desiring these goods
are not given in the announcements,
but are furnished to American firms
upon application to che bureau at
Washington or to any of the bureaus
district or cooperative offices. These
trade opportunities are based on reports
which foreign officers of the bureau
make, and contain detailed information
from which American firms can deter
mine whether or not they desire to en-
ter the markets involved.
The study OF any export problem,
whether the given commodity be agri
cultural or manufactured, must go hand
in hand with the investigation of many
fundamental factors, such as the gen.
eral economic stability, standard of liv-
ing. tariffs, foreign commercial Saws,
transportation facilities, etc.
Technical Divisions Maintained.
To handle these more technical
phases of the trade promotion work
and to keep records of commercial in
telligence the bureau maintains its own
technical divisions. The division of
foreign tariffs, for example is called
admission of products into any coun-
try, the basis upon which such duties
are levied and the adviceS i'll detail as
to consular invoices required.
The commercial laws division COM
piles information OH the operations of
! foreign commercial laws in SO far as
they affect trading by American firms
As one of its principal activities the
finance and investment division makes
careful analysis OF the opportunities
which await the American investor
abroad
AS these investments often call for
the purchase of machinery, equipment,
etc, the efforts which the division
makes toward interesting American
capital in foreign investments con-
tribute directly to the expansion of for
eign trade. Wherever such invest
ments offer a chance for the sale of
American goods or service one of the
many commodity divisions of the
bureau gets in touch with contracting
firms. manufacturers, supply houses and
others that may be interested.
The statistics division prepares for
the American business men interested
hundreds of special statements show
ing for the most important commodi-
ties the complete list of countries to
which these goods are exported or from
which they are imported.
$4,000, 900 Contract Won.
The foreign Offices aid the American
business man in many ways Not long
ago Athens decided to modernize its
water system. The city had been using
= water system not much different
from that which was in existence III the
Gays of PerlcleS. Then an American
contracting corporation came on the
scene, and after studying local condi-
lions and with the help of the COM