Business: Country Profiles

Prepared by Marcy Carrel (mcarrel@nelson.usf.edu)

May 2009

Finding Articles (Suggested Databases):

If you are off campus, please login through Blackboard and click through to the USF Libraries homepage. Under the tab “Resources,” click on “Databases by Title/Subject,” to search for databases of interest.  If you have any questions, please contact the Nelson Poynter Library Reference Desk at 727-873-4124.

Listed below are a few of the databases that might be most useful for country profile information:

BBC News, Country Profiles (public website, linked w/in USF databases)

“Full profiles provide an instant guide to history, politics and economic background of countries and territories, and background on key institutions.”  Use drop-down menus to search by region and country.  Also includes video and audio, when available, as well as a timeline of historical events for each country.

Countries and their Cultures (Gale Group)

The electronic version of this multi-volume print encyclopedia is available through the USF database subscriptions.  Each country entry is about 10-15 pages long.  For a more comprehensive search, use the Gale Virtual Reference Library to simultaneously search this publication and several other encyclopedias and reference publications such as the Worldmark Encyclopedia of the Nations.

Lexis-Nexis Academic

At the top, select the “business” tab, then select “country profiles” at the left.  Select a country from the drop-down list.  There are no compiled country profiles.  However, from a second drop-down list, you can select specific news and information sources such as BBC Monitoring and the PRS Group Political Risk Service.

MarketLine Business Information Centre

From the opening screen, select the tab for “browse countries” for a list of countries available.  Coverage is strongest in Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the developed world.  For each country, a country profile report from Datamonitor (30-40 pages) is listed at the top.  Also listed, when available, are marketing reports for specific industries and sectors within that country (e.g., “Bleach in Japan”).

Mergent Online

Begin by “entering Mergent Online” at upper left.  At lower right corner, there is a drop down box for selecting a country profile.  Each profile includes a map and statistical data (very little narrative).

SourceOECD

Provides access to articles, statistics, working papers and other information from the OECD / Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.  For country profiles, use the “go to: country reports & tables” from the drop-down box at the top.  The public Web site:  http://www.oecd.org has less content but a very user-friendly interface.  Also check the USF Libraries catalog for OECD Economic Surveys – reports/books on specific countries.

STAT-USA Internet (includes NTDB/National Trade Data Bank)

From the opening screen, select “GLOBUS & NTDB”.  Included under the heading “Market and Country Research” are “Country Background Notes” and “Country Commercial Guides” from the U.S. government.  Also try the links under “International Trade Library Highlights”. 

Viewswire (EIU / The Economist)

Advertises “Business intelligence on 201 countries”.  At the left-hand drop-down box, select a country.  You can then select a “1 click report” or drill down by area of interest.  Greatest strengths are the economic forecast, industry news, and financial sector coverage.  Also, search the remainder of the database for additional news.

The World Factbook (CIA) https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/

A ‘classic’ for country profiles, published by the CIA and updated on a regular basis.  Profiles include a map and general information and statistics about the economy, people, transportation systems, military, etc.  Country comparisons (ranked lists) are also available for about 50 different data items.

There are also many databases that include international coverage – where you might locate additional news and articles about events and issues within specific countries.  For example, try Access World News, PAIS International, and ABI/Inform Global.

Selected Web sites:

GlobalEdge (Michigan State University – Center for International Business Education and Research) http://globaledge.msu.edu/ibrd/ibrd.asp  Profiles include information compiled from a variety of cited sources.  From the “resource desk” tab, the “Current Insights” section “provides current information on the business climate, news, history, political structure, economic landscape, and relevant statistical data for 197 countries.”  The “global resources” section includes sites that are reviewed and rated by staff for usability and content.

Library of Congress Global Gateway (http://international.loc.gov/intldl/intldlhome.html)

Select “Research Guides and Databases” to find a wealth of primarily U.S. government resources, including the Country Studies series reports (part of what was formerly known as the Army Area Handbook Program).

NationMaster (http://www.nationmaster.com)

NationMaster provides access to data, statistics, and other information on countries (and U.S. states) from a variety of cited sources.  Use the tab at the top “Countries A-Z” to review information by country.  Focus is on data rather than text. User-friendly interface, although there is a fair amount of advertising on the site.

U.S. Department of State (http://www.state.gov/countries/)

The U.S. Department of State produces and regularly updates “Background Notes” – publications which “include facts about the land, people, history, government, political conditions, economy, and foreign relations of independent states, some dependencies, and areas of special sovereignty.”  The site also includes travel warnings and other current State Department press releases and information.

World Bank – Doing Business database (http://www.doingbusiness.org/)

The Doing Business database from the World Bank “provides objective measures of business regulations and their enforcement. The Doing Business indicators are comparable across 175 economies. They indicate the regulatory costs of business and can be used to analyze specific regulations that enhance or constrain investment, productivity, and growth.”  See also http://www.worldbank.org/.

Other:

Check the USF Libraries catalog for any books (print or e-books) available for the country you are researching.  The following reference publication is available for use in the library (not available electronically):

Europa World Year Book  (REF JN1.E85)

This two-volume set is published annually and provides useful overviews for all countries.  Each country entry includes an introductory essay, as well as history and politics, a variety of statistical information, and a directory of key government agencies and trade organizations.

Remember, you may contact a Reference Librarian in person, by phone (727/873-4124), or via chat (from the Ask a Librarian link on the USF Libraries web site).

Marcy Carrel

Email: mcarrel@nelson.usf.edu

Blog:   http://BusinessResearchUSFSP.blogspot.com/

Updated: May, 2009