The assessment of enterprises is carried out in the following areas:
- the competitive advantage of the product, compliance with the requirements on the export market;
- human resources for working on foreign markets;
- the financial condition of the company: the availability of funds required to enter the selected market, the development of a financial plan.
An enterprise must start exporting by drawing up a financial plan for a new type of activity (export). The main purpose of the plan should be to calculate the amount of financial resources to cover the costs both on the domestic and foreign markets. Analysis of the financial viability of the company will allow to evaluate its ability to invest in the launch of a project to enter foreign markets, as well as show how to properly allocate financial resources. In addition, it is necessary to calculate whether there is a need to attract borrowed funds.
Enterprises must calculate and prepare for the following costs:
- additional short-term costs, such as investments in increasing production capacity;
- adaptation of the product to the requirements of the intended market, including packaging;
- search for new markets and partners;
- market research;
- personnel training;
- business travel abroad;
- conducting information and advertising campaigns to promote the product;
- studying the requirements of the intended market, including packaging, and adapting the product to them;
- financing of the distribution system and the warranty service system, as well as post-warranty service;
- registration of export operations, customs payments, expenses on registration of certificates of conformity (declarations of conformity), certificates of origin, transportation costs, insurance of cargo (if necessary), permits and licenses for export of goods (if necessary);
- bank operations;
- commercial and financial risks (risks of exchange and non-payment).
Determination of market accessibility and the ability to organize the transportation of products
First, you should study the regulatory and technical requirements for products in force in the country of intended supply. Next, you need to assess the compliance of products and, if necessary, determine the direction for its refinement.
Then you should familiarize yourself with the conformity assessment procedures that must be performed to access the intended market. Focusing on the specifics of the product, it is necessary to select one or more transport companies for further cooperation on the transportation of products and equipment. Before, you need to analyze the cost of services of various transport companies and choose the best option.
Risk assessment
Export activities, like any business, are associated with certain external risks:
- political risks: domestic and foreign policy situation in the country, instability on the world market, the changing international situation;
- financial risks: it is important to make sure that the enterprise is able to resolve all financial issues (financing, transfers, currency exchange rate risks, international payment system) before exporting products;
- legal risks: application of requirements and norms established by the legislation of the country, including import procedures, taxation, issues of recruitment, protection of intellectual property, the procedure of concluding contracts;
- risks arising from transportation and logistics: damage, loss, theft of goods. It is important to carefully examine the most appropriate supply chains, warehousing and storage of products, and also pay special attention to the insurance of associated risks
In order to provide information support for exports, the Gosstandart of the Republic of Belarus implements a number of measures aimed at informing organizations of the Republic of Belarus about documents in the field of technical regulation, standardization, conformity assessment applicable to export-oriented products.
For prompt informing on international, European standards, acts of EU and EAEU technical legislation, the following bibliographic information is permanently layed out on the website of the National Foundation for Technical Regulatory Legal Acts:
- on the standards of the International Organization for ISO standardization;
- on the standards of the IEC International Electrotechnical Commission;
- on the recommendations of the ITU International Telecommunication Union;
- on the international standards of the Codex Alimentarius Commission;
- on the documents of the World Organization for Animal Health;
- on the international standards for phytosanitary measures;
- on the EU technical legislation;
- on the standards of the European Committee for CEN standardization;
- on the standards of the European Committee for Standardization in CENELEC Electrical Engineering;
- on the documents of the European Organization for the Accreditation of EA;
- on the technical regulations of the Customs Union;
- on the technical regulations of the CIS member states;
- on the national standards of the Russian Federation.
Similar information is provided as part of the full-text information systems «Standard», «The Customs Union. Technical regulation». Under existing licensing agreements, international and European standards, as well as national standards of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Kazakhstan, are provided.
The National Information Center for Technical Barriers to Trade, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SIC for TBT and SPS) operates on the basis of the BelGISS. It ensures the submission of notification annotations concerning regulations, technical regulations, standards, and conformity assessment systems (TBT notifications) in WTO member countries. It also covers notifications on measures relating to the protection of human health, their heredity, animal and plant health, and the environment (SPS notifications), which may become barriers to trade for other countries.
The registers of these notifications are placed in the «Bulletin of the National Information Center on Technical Barriers to Trade, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures» and on the SIC on TBT and SPS website.
On the official website of the Gosstandard in the section «Export Promotion» there is a reference to the section «Information Support»/«Export Promotion».
The section includes the following subsections:
- information on international and regional documents;
- information from the ISO, IEC, CEN, EU, PRC, REACH, GSO Standards Catalog and Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology sites;
- technical regulation in the CIS member states;
- conformity assessment in the EU;
- enterprises of the agro-industrial complex exporting products to the EU;
- energy saving: European experience;
- the register of notifications provided by WTO member countries to the National Information Center on Technical Barriers to Trade, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SIC for TBT and SPS);
- informational publications.
In the scientific and practical journal «Standardization» there is a permanent column «Export Assistance», which presents news of technical regulation of the CIS countries (Russian Federation, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, etc.), technical legislation of the European Union, information on new international and European standards, and also foreign practice of technical regulation as well as topical reviews.
More information about the journal and the conditions for subscribing to it can be found on the BelGISS website.
