(alphabetic lookup)
UCP (Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits): These are rules of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) that govern a letter of credit issued to pay for imports and exports.
UNCITRAL (United Nations Commission on International Trade and Law): UNCITRAL was set up by the UN to help harmonize and international trade laws. The Commission focuses on four principal international areas: sale of goods, payments, commercial arbitration, and legislation pertaining to shipping.
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID): A U.S. Government agency that procures goods and services from U.S. companies for use in in assistance to developing countries. (https://www.usaid.gov/)
U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA): A U.S. Government agency charged with gathering intelligence and statistics. The CIA publishes the World Factbook online, an excellent market research resource for US exporters. (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/)
U.S. Commercial Service (USCS): The trade promotion arm of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration. The USCS operates U.S. Export Assistance Centers nationwide, and has overseas offices to help American exporters in more than 75 countries. (https://www.export.gov)
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA): The U.S. Government department responsible for developing and executing federal government policy on farming, agriculture, forestry, and food. The Foreign Agricultural Service, within in USDA, is responsible for promoting U.S. food exports. (https://www.fas.usda.gov/)
U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC): This U.S. Government department is responsible for promoting domestic economic growth and handling other commerce-related responsibilities. (https://www.commerce.gov/)
USMCA (United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement): This trade agreement, signed in late 2018, is a replacement for the NAFTA agreement. While similar in many ways to NAFTA, the new agreement is designed to increase the North American components used in cars assembled here. It also reduces the Canadian tariffs on US produced dairy products. The USMCA also makes a number of significant upgrades to environmental and labor regulations, especially regarding Mexico.
U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA): The U.S. Government agency that manages programs for U.S. exporters, including export finance loan programs. To learn more, view our free webinar on SBA export financing. (https://www.sba.gov/)
U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA): The U.S. Government agency that provides grants for engineering and construction feasibility studies in developing countries using products and services sourced from the U. S. (https://ustda.gov/)
These links updated: 4/23/18. This website has been funded in part by the U.S. Commercial Service. Copyright (c) All Rights Reserved by the District Export Council of Georgia. Image: shutterstock_1069133606.