Information Links

Most useful link of all-and not just for Americans

The U.S.' International Trade Commission's web site provides several very useful services.

• You can get the tariff (duty) schedule for nearly every country in the world there. For countries other than the United States, use this link. For the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, use this link.
  
• The Trade Data Web has data on imports into the United States. You query the database with a Harmonized Tariff Schedule number and it will tell you what countries are importing into the US. It gives both historic and current data.

 

Other useful information sources

• Pace University  has the text of the CISG (This is the United Nations Convention on the International Sale of Goods, a key legal document controlling international purchases.) But you knew that, didn't you?
  
• Once you know the country you want to look in, one way to find out supplier names is to contact the embassy or consulate of that country. Here's a handy link to phone numbers of every embassy and consulate in the US.
  
• Blimey, what was a British pound worth on August 18, 2006? OandA.com has a currency converter with both current and past exchange rates for most currencies.
  
• What time is it there? Are they on summer or winter time?   Use Time and Date's World Clock  before that early-morning or late-night phone call.
  

Other useful commercial sites

• For face-to-face seminars on other purchasing topics: Law, basic and advanced purchasing, or electronics and blueprint reading for buyers, contact Nahabit and Associates.
• For on-line training on basic and advanced purchasing topics, contact Next Level Purchasing.
  
• Need some source inspection? (A good practice for the first few shipments.) Check out SGS. 
  

Best blog sites

Here are some very professional procurement-related blog sites.

• Sourcing Innovation
  
• Spend Matters
  
• Charles' Purchasing Certification Blog