"Types of international economic relations" Grade 10.

The time of national isolation, economic isolation of states is a thing of the past. Now the development of each country is inseparable from its participation in world production and the exchange of products, not even a single most developed country can efficiently produce all modern products. Therefore, in our era, international economic ties play a particularly important role.

The first place in the system of relations is occupied economically, which account for up to 3/4 of all relations. Due to the export of goods and services, many of them provide the predominant part of their income, so they are usually called countries with an open economy. The next place in the system of relations is occupied by the former colonies. Since they export raw materials, fuel, food, their share in last years declined as prices for these types of products fell, and this in turn led to an increase in their financial debt.

There are many forms of international economic relations.

international trade.

This is the oldest element, which originated even before the advent of capitalism, but then it was of a natural nature and had an insignificant scale. It flourished under capitalism. And today trade is the leading form of economic relations.

Under the influence, changes occur in the commodity structure of trade, the share of finished products increases in it. If in 1960 they accounted for only 45%, and 55% for raw materials, then in 1991 the share of finished products increased to 75%. In the structure of world trade, the volume of machinery and equipment increased (from 22% to 35%), while the share of raw materials, food products, and fuel decreased.

World trade is uneven. More than 70% of its turnover falls on economically developed countries, including 45% - on the countries of Western Europe. The needs of developed countries for the import of fuel, raw materials and food are almost fully satisfied,. The largest cargo flows in the world connect these countries. Russia today accounts for only 2% of the total volume of world trade. The export of capital is carried out from one country to another for profit, as well as for political purposes. The main exporters of capital were and remain economically developed countries:,. In these countries, the export of capital has long exceeded the export of goods. Most of the capital is directed to other developed countries, a smaller part - to developing ones. For example, the United States exports capital not only to countries, but also to Canada and some countries of Western Europe. IN Lately some developing countries have also become exporters of capital. For example, exporting countries (). Scientific and technical cooperation, which contributes to the introduction of the latest achievements, the rational use of natural resources. A special place here belongs to the trade in patents and licenses, as well as the implementation of joint scientific developments and projects in various areas of the economy.

Industrial collaboration.

It consists in cooperating enterprises or creating joint ventures, in cooperation in the field of construction and joint production. This type of international economic relations is especially characteristic for developing countries, as industrial facilities become the center of industrialization.

Credit and financial relations, which are manifested in the provision of loans and. The basis for this is the existence of a currency in the country. Japan is the world's largest creditor country.

international tourism.

For many, tourist service has become an international specialty. These countries include "resort". There is an opinion that at the end of the century international tourism will become the leading export industry in the world, as it accounts for 6% of world exports and is growing from year to year. Annual income from international tourism has already exceeded 250 billion dollars. The main region of international tourism is. It accounts for 65% of total number tourists. A significant role as a tourist region and, as well. According to experts' forecasts, in 2000 500 million people will be involved in international tourism, which is 80 million more than in 1990. Other important forms of international economic relations include compensatory transactions and the provision of various kinds of services.

Despite the alternation of periods of "cooling" and "warming" in international relations, international economic ties were constantly expanding. At the same time, they not only brought economic benefits to countries, but also contributed to strengthening peace on Earth.

The concept of foreign trade

International trade in the system of world economic relations has its own special place. Despite the fact that in modern conditions the main form of economic relations is foreign investment, international trade, due to its functionality and scale, retains exceptional importance in the MEW complex. It contributes to the mediation of almost all types of international cooperation, including also the production activities of multinational entities.

In turn, international trade is a form of exchange of products and services among different countries, associated with the general internationalization of economic life, the intensification of the division of labor in the conditions of the scientific and technological revolution.

In addition to goods and services, foreign trade in information is also possible, which is carried out in the following forms:

• trade in goods in cases where information is an integral and integral part of them;
• trade in intellectual property, which implies the transfer of information as a transfer of rights to objects of intellectual property;
• in the form of trade in services in other cases.

Types of foreign trade

• Wholesale;
• Trading on stock exchanges;
• Trading on commodity exchanges;
• Trading in the foreign exchange markets;
• International fairs.

In form, foreign trade can be in the form of trade in goods and services, investment (a form of capital movements), information technology exchange, as well as a currency settlement system.

By organizational forms foreign trade operations are barter (represent an exchange of goods, services, intellectual property), take place as external purchases (when the seller undertakes to counter-purchase goods in the buyer's country), offset transactions (mutual supply of goods), buyout of obsolete products, as well as operations on raw materials to be supplied .

In turn, the isolation of trade participants determines the corresponding commodity-money nature of relations. BT competition has more high level than in national markets, and purchase and sale transactions are systematic. In parallel with the world commodity markets, there is a financial market, as well as an international financial system.

All this presupposes both its own infrastructure and special institutions. Foreign trade is subject to monopolization, which is possible both along the lines of concentration of production and along the lines of marketing. Also Foreign trade is not free from state regulation.

Foreign Trade Methods

Foreign trade is characterized by the following methods:

• Direct - the implementation of trade relations directly between the seller and the buyer or between the manufacturer and the seller;
• Cooperative - characterized by the involvement of third parties to carry out trading operations;
• Intra-corporate - when an international operation is carried out in the geographical and physical international space, but economically in a single intra-corporate;
• Countertrade method - operations in which the movement of goods takes place both from the importer to the exporter and in the opposite direction;
• Electronic - trade through the global network;
• Institutional - competitive - trading through international tenders, auctions, exchanges.

Giving the concept of international trade, one should not forget that it, like other components of the system of international financial relations, is considered a very laborious and multifaceted phenomenon, therefore there are a large number of its definitions. Here is one of the more generally recognized: international trade is the sum of the foreign trade of all the states of the world.

Foreign trade is the trade of a given state with other states, consisting of export (export) and import (import) of goods, works, services. Foreign and international trade are considered the closest concepts. The same commodity transaction between 2 countries can be considered from the side of both foreign and international trade. Both of them are connected with the sphere of international circulation, with acts of sale. The formation of these categories is guided by the processes of the sphere of production. However, these concepts are far from unambiguous. Foreign and international trade relate to each other as private and common, as national and international. If they talk about foreign trade, they mean a specific branch of the economy of a particular country that is related to cases related to the sale of a share of state products (goods and services) in foreign markets and a share of foreign products and services in one state market.

Foreign trade is regulated mainly by state bodies, it is associated with such categories as the trade balance, state financial policy.

International trade is a kind of sphere that connects the trade sectors of state economies. Therefore, it is not purely automatic, but an organic unity that has personal laws of formation, special regulatory bodies. International trade is connected with the international division of labor and the international market.

Foreign trade is the main activity of any country. In the absence of trade and a foreign market, no country has the opportunity to exist and develop. At this stage, when individual states have become parts of the international economy, their economy is largely dependent on the external market. In connection with the improvement of international specialization and cooperation, the rise of the internationalization of economic life, under the influence of scientific and technological revolution(STR) foreign trade is becoming the most significant factor in financial development, a factor in the interaction and cooperation of countries.

International trade is one of the forms of international economic relations (IER).

As you know, the main forms of MEO are:

• * international trade;
• * international monetary and financial relations;
• * international scientific, technical and industrial cooperation;
• * international labor migration;
• * international migration of capital and international investments;
• * international economic integration.

All these forms are closely connected and interact with each other, although, of course, international trade is considered the main, most important and favorite form. It mediates other forms, a significant proportion of which is realized through it. Namely, the improvement of international specialization and cooperation of production, international scientific and technical cooperation are reflected in the expansion of the exchange of goods and services between states. The connection and interdependence of international trade and international investment activity are considered very narrow. Foreign investments, most often direct investments made by manufacturing firms, usually increase the development of export production in capital recipient countries and, therefore, contribute to the expansion and increase in the size of world trade.

Regional integration groupings and associations (for example, the EU, NAFTA, CIS, APEC) influence the commodity and geographical structure of international trade, contribute to its development, as a rule, on the scale of these associations.

At the same time, they often hinder the improvement of transcontinental commodity flows and, from time to time, limit the processes of unification of the world economy.

In general, the impact of international trade on the world economy and international financial relations is contained in the following:

• - the rise in foreign trade exchange between states comes down to the fact that the connection and interdependence of the economic complexes of individual states is strengthened so that disruptions in the economy of a country can lead to bad consequences for the development of national economies in other states;
• - with the help of international trade, the effects of all forms of world economic relations are produced - the export of money, international scientific, technical and industrial cooperation;
• - the expansion of inter-regional, intra-regional in interstate trade relations is a prerequisite and impetus for international economic integration;
• - international trade contributes to the subsequent deepening of the international division of labor and the unification of the world economy.

Consequently, at the current stage, international trade plays a significant role in the development of both the world economy and the IER in general, but also of individual subjects of the world economy, being, firstly, the most powerful factor in economic growth, and secondly, a factor in increasing the interdependence of states.

In our period, the structure of foreign trade is represented by the following types:

• * export;
• * import;
• * transit trade: acquisition abroad with simultaneous sale to a third country;
• * special forms, for example, re-export or re-import of goods that have been refined;
• * production under license;
• * cooperation;
• * compensation deals, etc.

Export is understood as a type of entrepreneurial foreign trade activity associated with the receipt by a firm (resident) of cash proceeds in the course of the sale and export of its competitive products to a foreign partner (non-resident) abroad.

The export operation scheme includes:

• a) conclusion of a contract for the supply of the product;
• b) supply of products.

Exports are of 2 types: non-residential (when a firm exports leftovers from time to time, offering goods to local wholesalers representing foreign firms) and active (in order to expand exports in a particular market).

Also, export can be direct and indirect.

Direct export is carried out through the export department of the enterprise located in its own country, through the sales office (branch) abroad, export salesmen, as well as through foreign distributors or agents.

Indirect export is carried out by involving independent intermediary exporters, representatives, different organizations. Indirect exports are more common abroad. 2 factors contribute to this:

• 1) the company creates all goods in its own country, therefore, it requires less capital investment to expand production and create a personal trading tool abroad;
• 2) less degree of risk.

Import is understood as a type of entrepreneurial activity of Russian residents associated with the acquisition from non-residents and import into the resident state of products, services and technologies for subsequent distribution in the domestic market.

Import operations are of 2 types: direct and indirect.

With direct imports, Russian residents purchase products directly from a foreign manufacturer (non-resident) or from an export intermediary abroad. An import transaction is made between a resident (domestic recipient) and a non-resident (supplier) abroad.

With indirect imports, Russian companies (residents) purchase a product from a Russian entrepreneur (separate company) specializing in import transactions, who also receives the product from a foreign manufacturer (non-resident) or exporter (it may also be another resident). The import transaction is executed between a Russian entrepreneur specializing in the import of specific products and a general supplier abroad.

Import mode also comes in 2 types: unlicensed import and licensed.

Unlicensed import is carried out when the conclusion of import contracts has no restrictions, i.e. an importer (non-resident) may, without special permission from the regulatory authorities, conclude a sales agreement (contract) with a foreign supplier (other non-resident), import the product into the territory Russian Federation and make payment.

Licensed imports occur when the importation of products from abroad requires special permission from the regulatory authorities, which determine the conditions, volume and issue licenses for any type of product. Only after acquiring an import license can an importer (non-resident) enter into a sales contract with a resident. To carry out an import operation, the importer (non-resident) must have the financial means to purchase products, know potential suppliers, analyze the prices of competitors offering the necessary goods, conclude an agreement with a more preferable exporter (resident), receive the purchased product and pay for it.

foreign trade economic policy

International trade is a specific form of exchange of products of labor between sellers and buyers. different countries, which serves as the initial type of world economic relations.

As part of this definition It seems appropriate to pay special attention to the following circumstances:

• 1) far from always the exchange of labor products must necessarily take the form of trade, i.e. purchase and sale, which involves identifying the specific causes that give rise to international trade;
• 2) we are talking about such a type of foreign economic activity, in which, in the strict sense of the word, only the act of selling the produced product is transferred outside the national territory, but not its full or even partial creation;
• 3) currently circulating through the channels international trade products of labor are quite diverse, their most general classification involves the allocation of three fundamentally different groups - goods, services, intellectual property rights;
• 4) both logically and historically, international trade forms the foundation on which the whole diverse set of modern system international economic relations, which, in turn, makes us think about the dialectical relationship between various types of foreign economic activity.

The concept of "international trade" should be distinguished from the terms "foreign trade" and "world trade" that are close to it in meaning, often in everyday speech used as a synonym, but at the same time by no means identical to it (and to each other).

Let's deal with the last one first. Assessing the situation in the market of each individual country and their totality as a whole, we must state that in the overwhelming majority of cases, both goods produced by domestic companies and products of foreign manufacturers are presented there at the same time. Accordingly, purchase and sale transactions are concluded and implemented both for one and for other products, forming a complex of exchange operations called world trade. It is thus larger than the set of relationships that is the immediate object of the topic, as it includes relationships between sellers and buyers from the same country.

The main difference between the concepts of "international trade" and "foreign trade" is that, speaking of foreign trade, we evaluate it from the point of view of a particular country or group of countries (foreign trade of Russia, foreign trade of Great Britain, foreign trade of the Baltic countries, etc.). .P.). Here, everything that is outside the national territory appears as external in relation to it. At the same time, when we talk about international trade, we mean activities carried out within the framework of the entire world economy. In relation to it, only trade relations with extraterrestrial civilizations could be external. Thus, international trade is the totality of the foreign trade of all countries. At the same time, foreign trade of individual states and regions is an integral part of international trade.

The main types of foreign trade operations. Foreign trade operations, considered in a generalized form, involve either the export of manufactured products outside the national territory, or, conversely, its import from abroad. Accordingly, they talk about export or about import.

At the same time, both export and import operations, in turn, do not act as something homogeneous. They can be divided into smaller groups - varieties. Most often, one can come across a classification of foreign trade operations depending on the origin and destination of the manufactured products, which is based on the fact that, from the point of view of the impact on the economy of countries participating in international trade, various types of foreign trade operations are not equivalent.

Consequently, the degree of their state regulation may also vary, for example, the amount of customs duty charged or the established rights and obligations of the owner in terms of the use of products circulating through international trade channels. For this purpose, apply different kinds customs procedures, a detailed description of which is given in the Customs Code of the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan (section 6), which has been in force since 2010. Among the customs procedures, in particular, the following stand out:

• export- customs procedure in which the goods of the customs union are exported outside the customs territory of the customs union and are intended for permanent residence outside it;
• re-export- a customs procedure in which goods previously imported into the customs territory of the Customs Union are exported from this territory without payment and (or) with a refund of the paid amounts of import customs duties, taxes and without the use of non-tariff regulation measures;
• temporary export- a customs procedure in which goods of the Customs Union are imported and used within a specified period outside the customs territory of the Customs Union with full exemption from export customs duties and without the application of non-tariff regulation measures, followed by repatriation to the territory of the Customs Union;
• refusal in favor of the state- a customs procedure in which foreign goods are transferred free of charge to the ownership of a member state of the customs union without payment of customs duties and without the application of non-tariff regulation measures.

If we look at export from the point of view of the formation of the company's management and marketing strategies, then we will get at least two possible classifications of it. On the one hand, passive and active exports are distinguished. Passive export involves the periodic export of excess products from the customs territory of the country in case of their occurrence. Active export occurs when a firm not only sets, but also realizes the goal of expanding the scale of its operations by selling products in a specific foreign market or several such markets. On the other hand, indirect and direct exports stand out. Indirect export involves the use of the services of independent intermediaries - export agents, sales companies, etc. At direct export the firm - the producer of production itself carries out export operations.

Quantitative parameters of the development of international trade. International (and equally foreign) trade is primarily characterized by three most important indicators:

• total volume (turnover);
• commodity (branch) structure;
• geographical structure.

Volume of trade, estimated at the level of an individual country (or a group of countries), we will get if we sum up all export and all import operations:

To assess the results of foreign trade activities, it is very often necessary to compare data on the volume of trade over a number of years. In this case, we can use two calculation options: first, the turnover calculated in actual (current) prices, the result of which is the value of the turnover; secondly, the calculation in constant prices, the result of which is the physical volume of trade.

Each of these indicators has its own advantages and disadvantages, but both are important for analysis. When using current prices, we have an idea of ​​the real value Money, which the state, on the one hand, receives through the sale of manufactured products abroad, on the other hand, pays to suppliers of imported goods and services. As for the physical volume, here, abstracting from price changes caused by market fluctuations, we more clearly imagine the real dynamics of the movement of goods and services as such.

Earlier, we have already found out that international trade is the totality of the foreign trade of all countries. Does this mean that, summing up the indicators of the foreign trade turnover of the states that form the world economy, we will get the value of the turnover of international trade? In other words, can we use the following formula to calculate this indicator:

It would be wrong to do so. The fact is that within the framework of the entire world economy, the export of some countries simultaneously turns out to be the import of others. This means that, using formula (1), we will inevitably encounter repeated counting. In order to avoid it, it is necessary to summarize for all countries only one of the types of foreign trade operations - either exports or imports. Based on the foregoing, we can draw a conclusion, the generalized expression of which will be the following formula:

International trade = World exports = World imports. (2)

Let's see how our theoretical calculations are confirmed by statistical data. The most authoritative institution in these matters - the World Trade Organization (WTO) - determines the total volume of world merchandise exports in 2008 at 15,775 billion dollars, in 2012 - at 17,850 billion, and in 2014 - at 18,935 billion As for world merchandise imports, its value, according to the WTO, for the same years was $16,120 billion, $18,155 billion, and $19,024 billion, respectively. A similar discrepancy occurs in data for other years.

The inequality in the volumes of world exports and imports stems from differences in the logical basis of statistical estimates of foreign trade operations. Accounting for export deliveries, as a rule, is carried out in the so-called FOB prices (FOB; free on board free [delivery] on board, "free - board"), including all costs associated with the delivery of goods on board the vessel carrying them. For land transportation, the FOB price corresponds to the price of the goods on the condition "ex-land border of the exporting country", which also reflects the total cost of production and delivery of goods directly to the border of the exporting country. As for import deliveries, their accounting is carried out, as a rule, in the so-called CIF prices (With IF; cost, insurance, freight - cost, insurance, freight), taking into account the costs of delivering the goods to the specified port of destination, i.e. including the cost of cargo insurance in transit and its transportation (sea freight). The concept of the CIF price for maritime transportation corresponds to the concept of "free - frontier of the importing country" for land transportation.

IN in a certain sense such a difference in the approach to determining the volume of exports and imports looks completely logical. Indeed, from the point of view of a country participating in a foreign trade transaction, it is the crossing of the country's customs border in one direction or the other that becomes the fact that determines the operation.

With regard to our formula (2), we can measure the total volume of both exports and imports at the same prices - FOB, CIF or whatever. In this case, all indicators must match.

Commodity (sectoral) structure international (and equally foreign) trade shows us the ratio of various groups of goods in the total volume of the corresponding operations. IN this case, especially in relation to the foreign trade of individual countries, it is expedient to speak about both the commodity structure of exports and the commodity structure of imports. Comparison of these indicators makes it possible to whole line conclusions characterizing not only foreign economic activity of this or that state, but also the general economic situation of the country.

The fact is that at the level of specific national economies, the commodity structure of exports and imports does not coincide, and in a number of cases they differ fundamentally. For example, in 2012, in Russia's exports, the share of mineral products accounted for 71.4%, and the share of machinery, equipment and vehicles - 5%. In the same year, the share of these commodity groups in imports was 2.4% and 49.9%, respectively. At the same time, in international trade in general, the commodity structure of exports and imports coincide.

An analysis of the dynamics of the commodity structure of foreign trade over a certain period is also of undoubted scientific and practical value. If we supplement it with a comparison with an analysis of the dynamics of the commodity structure of international trade performed on the same time base, then we will be able to characterize the change in the competitive positions of a given national economy in the general system of the world economy.

Geographic structure international (and equally foreign) trade characterizes the share of individual countries and groups of states in the total volume of relevant sales transactions. At the level of the world economy, ego allows us to identify those countries that account for the bulk of both exports and imports, changing the balance of power between them. Thus, in 2014, according to the WTO, the PRC carried out 12.4% of the total volume of commodity export operations in the world, the USA - 8.6%, Germany - 8.0%. The share of the Russian Federation in the same year accounted for only 2.6% of world merchandise exports. It should be borne in mind that the geographical structure of world exports and world imports differ from each other. In particular, in 2014, the share of China, the USA, Germany and Russia in world merchandise imports was 10.3%; 12.7%; 6.4% and 1.8% respectively. This is due to the discrepancy between national indicators of the volume of export and import operations. The vast majority of countries have either a deficit or a positive trade balance.

At the level of individual states, the geographical structure of exports and imports also differ. Of course, theoretically one can imagine the situation of their coincidence, but to real life it hardly applies. The analysis of these indicators, especially performed in dynamics over a certain period of time, can give rise to serious reflections and conclusions.

Indeed, isn't it amazing that the share of the USSR and its legal successor, the Russian Federation, in the foreign trade turnover of Finland (for which the USSR was the largest trading partner in 1980-1987) has decreased since 1982-1983. until 1992 from 25.9 to 4.8%, pushing Russia to sixth place in this indicator after Germany,

Sweden, UK, USA and France? Apparently, one should seriously think about the fact that the share of the CIS countries in the export of the Russian Federation, which was 25.1% in 1993, decreased by 2012 to 14.8%.

Franco (it. franco - free) - a term denoting the condition for the transfer of the rights of the seller to the buyer of the product upon delivery, until which the seller bears the commercial costs of transporting and insuring the product.

FEA: essence, types. Subjects of foreign economic activity. The essence and significance of foreign trade. Foreign trade operations. Economic potential of Russia's foreign trade. Directions of trade and economic cooperation of Russia.

Peculiarities of Russia's trade and economic relations with the CIS countries.Agreement about customs union and common economic space, the main provisions. Agreement of the CIS countries "On the Customs Union".Prospects for Russia's accession to the WTO.

FEA: essence, types.

FEA(foreign economic activity) - a set of organizational and economic, production and economic and operational and commercial functions of export-oriented enterprises, taking into account the chosen foreign economic strategy, forms and methods of work in the foreign partner's market.

In accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, the definition of foreign economic activity means foreign trade, investment and other activities, including industrial cooperation, in the field of international exchange of goods, information, works, services, results of intellectual activity (rights to them).

FEA is carried out at the level of production structures (firms, organizations, enterprises, associations, etc.) with complete independence in choosing the external market and foreign partner, the range and assortment items of goods for an export-import transaction, in determining the price and value of the contract, the volume and delivery times and is part of their production and commercial activities with both domestic and foreign partners.

FEA belongs to the market sphere, is based on the criteria of entrepreneurial activity, structural connection with production and is distinguished by legal autonomy and economic, as well as legal independence from industry departmental guardianship.

FEA is entrepreneurial activity aimed at making a profit, which includes the following areas: Foreign trade, technical and economic cooperation, scientific, technical and industrial cooperation.

There are the following types of foreign economic activity:

foreign trade activity;

international division of labor;

industrial cooperation;

international investment cooperation;

currency and financial and credit operations;

relations with international organizations.

Foreign trade activity- this is entrepreneurship in the field of international exchange of goods, works, services, information and results of intellectual activity.

The prerequisites and conditions for the international division of labor on a significant scale arose in the era of the development of capitalism due to the industrial revolution, the emergence of the machine industry, and the specialization of production. The demand for certain types of goods in various countries that could not extract and produce them in sufficient quantities stimulated the development of foreign trade in scarce goods. Trade and the benefits derived from it pushed countries to expand the production of such goods, as a result of which labor in these countries was concentrated on the production of certain types of economic product.

Industrial cooperation as part of the foreign economic activity of enterprises and firms, it also represents one of the forms of cooperation between foreign partners in various, but structurally related processes of the technological division of labor. The technological process of the division of labor itself means the distribution of its participants in the chain of creation and sale of products according to its main phases, from studying the needs in domestic and foreign markets to bringing it to end consumers. Industrial cooperation is typical for homogeneous areas of production and circulation, for scientific, technical, investment and service areas, for example, for the manufacturing industry.

Consistency of actions of partners within the framework of industrial cooperation is achieved by:

mutual planning of export and import-substituting products;

forecasting and joint conduct of scientific developments, providing them with the necessary equipment, instruments and materials, test benches and scientific and technical information;

organization of the training process.

International investment cooperation assumes one of the forms of interaction with foreign partners based on the combined efforts of a financial and logistical nature. The goals of such cooperation are to expand the base for the development and production of export products, its systematic renewal on the basis of competitiveness criteria and the facilitation of the processes of its implementation in the foreign market. Such tasks can be solved by organizing, for example, joint production. Joint entrepreneurship is possible primarily on the basis of the exchange of technologies, services, followed by the distribution of programs for the production of products and their implementation, as well as in the form of the formation and functioning of concessions, consortiums, joint-stock companies, international non-governmental organizations, etc.

Currency and financial and credit operations as a type of foreign economic activity, enterprises and firms should be considered primarily as facilitators, accompanying any foreign trade transaction in the form of financial obligations related to ensuring payment for the delivered products through specific forms of payment, as well as currency transactions committed in order to avoid exchange losses.

An important sector of the foreign economic complex is participation in international organizations whether governmental or non-governmental. In modern international relations, international organizations play a significant role as a form of cooperation between states and multilateral diplomacy. The following features are characteristic of an interstate organization: membership of states; the presence of a constituent international treaty; permanent bodies; respect sovereignty, Member States. Taking into account these signs, it can be stated that an international intergovernmental organization is an association of states established on the basis of an international treaty to achieve common goals, having permanent bodies and acting in the common interests of member states while respecting their sovereignty.

The main types of foreign economic activity are also:

export and import of goods, capital and labor

provision by FEA participants of services to foreign business entities, including manufacturing, freight forwarding, insurance, consulting, marketing, intermediary, brokerage, agency, consignment, management, auditing, legal, tourism, etc.

scientific, scientific and technical, scientific and production, production and other cooperation with foreign business entities.

education and training of specialists on a commercial basis through the conclusion of contracts with foreign economic entities

international financial operations(operations with securities)

creation by foreign business entities of enterprises on the territory of the Russian Federation

joint business activities between participants in foreign economic activity of Russia and foreign economic entities. Activities, including the creation of enterprises of all forms of ownership and types of body-rights

activities on the territory of the Russian Federation related to the granting of licenses, patents, know-how, trademarks and other intangible property of foreign economic entities with Russian participants in foreign economic activity

organization and holding of exhibitions, auctions, conferences, seminars and other similar events carried out on a commercial basis with the participation of foreign economic activity entities

Concessions to foreign legal entities and individuals

operations for the processing of tolling raw materials (tolling)

barter transactions, forms of counter trade, cooperation on a compensatory basis, production sharing agreement between Russian participants in foreign economic activity and economic entities

rental operations, incl. leasing between Russian and foreign economic entities

Subjects of foreign economic activity.

Subjects of foreign economic activity are natural persons; legal entities and other legally capable organizations; public entities, including states; international organizations. Individuals such as citizens (citizens of the Russian Federation), foreign citizens and stateless persons can act as subjects of foreign economic activity. To make foreign economic transactions with foreign citizens and stateless persons, it is important for Russian entrepreneurs to know whether these persons are entitled to assume obligations under the transaction (to be a party to the transaction), since the achievement of the economic result that entrepreneurs set for themselves when concluding an agreement depends on this. Foreign citizens and stateless persons can make various transactions in order to implement PD. In some cases, entrepreneurs are the parties to foreign economic activity. For example, when concluding a contract for the international sale of goods, the parties to the contract must be entrepreneurs, while an insurance contract can be concluded by a Russian insurer with foreign citizens and stateless persons who may or may not be entrepreneurs.

The essence and significance of foreign trade

International trade - it is the exchange of goods and services between state-registered national economies or their representatives.

International trade is a set of export-import operations of a particular country. This is the trade of one country with the subjects of the world economy.

International trade is an important and historically the first form of international economic relations. At present, all subjects of the world economy participate in it.

The main factors in the development of international trade :

international division of labor, specialization of countries in the production and trade of certain goods and services;

development of commodity production and market economy;

a scientific and technological revolution that has accelerated the qualitative transformation of all elements of the productive forces and shifts in the geographical and commodity structure of world flows of goods and services.

The role of international trade in the development of world economic relations:

partial resolution of the contradiction between production and consumption inherent in a market economy. However, not being fully resolved with the help of export-import of goods, these contradictions are transferred to the sphere of world economic relations, which finds expression in intense competition between the subjects of international trade;

participation in international trade leads to the intensification of the reproduction process in national economies in a number of areas: specialization is enhanced, the possibility of organizing mass production is created, the degree of equipment loading is increased, and the efficiency of new equipment and technologies is increasing;

the expansion of exports causes an increase in employment, which has important social consequences;

active participation in international trade creates conditions for accelerating progressive structural changes in national economies. For many developing countries (especially Asian ones), export growth has important foundation industrialization and increased economic growth. The expansion of exports allows the mobilization and more efficient use of natural resources and labor force, which ultimately contributes to the growth of labor productivity and income;

at the same time, an increase in foreign trade exchange, an increase in the role of export-import in national economies contribute to the synchronization of the economic cycle in the world economy. The interconnection and interdependence of national economies is growing so much that a disruption in the functioning of the economy of any major participant in the world market inevitably entails international consequences, including the spread of crisis phenomena to other countries.

Foreign trade operations

Export - export abroad of goods of national origin or largely processed in the country for the purpose of their sale.

Import - import of foreign goods for the purpose of their use in the domestic market.

Export-import transactions are the most common in international trade.

Counter trade- foreign trade operations, in the course of which documents (agreements or contracts) fix firm obligations of exporters and importers to make a full or partially balanced exchange of goods. In the latter case, the difference in value is covered by cash payments.

This is the most famous type of international trade, which previously consisted in the barter of goods. Countertrade, which was subsequently supplanted by commodity-money relations, has acquired a new content in modern conditions and has received a certain development in international commodity exchange. It accounts for 25 to 30% of the volume of international trade transactions.

The initiators of the development of countertrade are importers who, in the conditions of a shortage of foreign exchange, can purchase the necessary goods with full or partial payment for them with the supply of their goods. In the conditions of the aggravation of the sales problem, exporters are forced to accept from the buyer not the monetary equivalent of their value, but other goods that they either use in their own production or sell on the market. One of the features of countertrade is the expansion of the practice of counterpurchases by exporters of goods that cannot be used by them in their own production, but are intended in advance for subsequent sale on the foreign or domestic market.

UN experts distinguish three main types of international counter transactions:

barter transactions (barter transactions);

trade compensation transactions (commercial compensation);

industrial compensation transactions (industrial compensation).

An industrial offset transaction is a transaction in which one party supplies (often also agreeing on the necessary financing) the second party with goods, services and/or technology that the latter uses to create new production capacities. These deliveries are then offset by deliveries of goods produced in the establishments thus established (or sometimes by deliveries of similar goods produced by third parties in the country). In a trade offset transaction, as a rule, there is no such relationship between the mutual concrete actions of both parties.

Specialists of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) divide all international counter transactions into two categories:

trade compensation;

industrial compensation.

Under trade compensation refers to a single transaction for a small or moderate amount, including the exchange of highly heterogeneous goods, which are usually not organically related to each other.

Under industrial compensation refers to transactions that involve the sale of related goods for a larger amount, usually corresponding to the value of complete industrial equipment or ready-made plants.

barter and compensation transactions on a non-currency basis;

compensation deals on a commercial basis;

compensation deals based on industrial cooperation agreements.

Types of international counter transactions

1. Exchange and compensation transactions on a non-currency basis

2. Offset transactions on a commercial basis

3. Compensation transactions based on industrial cooperation agreements

These three main types of transactions are very diverse in terms of their goals and nature, timing of execution, settlement mechanism, procedure for implementation.

Transactions based on natural exchange - barter (barter). Barter transactions are the most traditional type of countertrade, which is a non-currency, but valued exchange of goods. The valuation of goods is carried out to ensure the equivalence of the exchange. These transactions are characterized by the presence of a contract, which fixes the natural volumes of exchanged goods, and the simultaneous movement of commodity flows. The quantity of goods is not affected by changes in price proportions in the world market. Pure barter is the least common in countertrade.

Commercial transactions involving the participation of the seller in the sale of goods. This is the most common group of operations, which has two varieties:

direct purchase of goods for internal use or for resale to a third party;

assistance of the exporter in finding a buyer for the importer's goods.

The fundamental difference between this kind of transactions and barter is that it uses money as a measure of value and a means of payment. Such transactions can be formalized legally either by one export contract specifying the terms of countertrade, or by two contracts for primary export and counter-export. In the latter case, the first export contract contains the obligation of the exporter to purchase goods from the importer for an amount equal to a certain percentage of the original supply.

There are many types of transactions in this group, for example: compensation deals. The seller agrees to receive payment in whole or in part in the form of deliveries of any of the buyer's goods. As a rule, this is formalized in one contract. Such transactions resemble barter transactions, but have some significant differences. First, each partner invoices for their deliveries in cash. Second, the exporter may outsource its counter-import obligations to a third party. With this form of transaction, you can receive revenue at the same time;

counter purchases (counter deliveries). The exporter undertakes to purchase or arrange for a third party to purchase the importer's goods for an amount equal to a certain, predetermined percentage of his own supplies. These transactions are formalized by two contracts, and sometimes specific goods are not indicated, but the terms and amount of the purchase are fixed. Payments under the contract are made simultaneously;

advance purchases. In this case, the initial and counter deliveries seem to change places, i.e., the party interested in selling its goods to a certain buyer first purchases any goods or services from him;

offset agreement. The exporter agrees to purchase goods from the importer's country for an amount that is a certain percentage of the amount of the export delivery, and this share most often exceeds 100%. Deals of this kind tend to be associated with expensive programs for the purchase of weapons and military equipment;

switch transactions. In this case, the exporter transfers his counter delivery obligations to a third party, usually a specialized trading firm. Such transactions are used in combination with any other forms, except for barter;

purchase of obsolete products, i.e., offsetting the residual value of the purchased goods at the price of new ones. This form of trade is one of the most effective ways to increase sales in a highly competitive market, and is most widely used in the sale of cars, agricultural machinery, electronic computers, etc. Thus, in industrialized countries, trading representatives of almost all automotive companies, when a client buys a new car, deduct the price of the old one from its cost. There are approximately the same for all firms tables for estimating the cost of old cars, depending on the year of manufacture, mileage and technical condition. IN Western Europe at the end of the 80s. more than 70% of new cars were sold when buying outdated models:

Counter deliveries as an integral part of industrial cooperation, For example compensation supplies(buy back). The exporter delivers the equipment on credit terms, and the payment of the credits provided must be made after receiving the proceeds from the counter deliveries of products. Within the framework of such agreements, machines, equipment, materials and some other types of goods for the construction of industrial facilities are imported on credit terms. Subsequently, foreign exchange earnings from the export of part of the products of these enterprises serves as a source of loan repayment.

This group also includes:

operations with tolling raw materials, i.e. processing of foreign raw materials with payments for work with raw materials or processed products. As a result of the uneven development of productive forces, different countries have asymmetrical capacities for the extraction and processing of raw materials, which will create prerequisites for the conclusion of international contracts, according to which one of the parties undertakes to export raw materials and import processed products or finished products, the other - to process raw materials, called tolling. , with their own means. Payment for the services of processing firms under such agreements is carried out by deliveries of an additional amount of tolling raw materials.

Economic potential of Russia's foreign trade

Russia's unique potential

There are many countries in the world, the assessment of which often depends on subjective factors and may change over time. This provision does not apply to Russia's potential, size, territory, diversity of climatic zones and landscape, as well as population throughout most of the twentieth century. consistently received the highest ratings from almost all world experts

Based on a population with European traditions, Russia is a unique Eurasian state that occupies a significant part of the territory of both Europe and Asia. Russia's peculiar location gives the country the potential to play an active role in these two parts of the world. WITH geographic point rather cost-effective air and land routes connecting Europe, Central and Southeast Asia can pass through the territory of Russia.

At the same time, the huge territorial extent of Russia does not allow an unambiguous approach to assessing its geographical potential. On the one hand, the geographical potential provides an opportunity for the powerful development of the domestic market and the national economy of the country, relying solely on own possibilities and resources of Russian regions. On the other hand, even Russia's extensive involvement in global transport inevitably raises the question of bringing the transport infrastructure up to the level of world standards, which is difficult to achieve without the country's overall socio-economic progress, which will help reduce the cost of transport services and increase their economic and environmental safety and operational reliability.

Analysis of Russia's place in the global agricultural and industrial production suggests that at present the possibility of the country's gradual transformation into an agricultural raw material and fuel and energy appendage of the industrialized countries of the West is by no means removed from the agenda: 1st place - natural gas; 2nd place - brown coal, potatoes, milk; 3rd place - oil, sulfuric acid (in monohydrate); 4th place - electricity, pig iron, steel, iron ore, commercial timber removal, cotton fabrics, cereals and leguminous crops, sugar beets; 5th place - finished rolled ferrous metals, lumber, mineral fertilizers; 6th place - coal, cellulose, meat (in slaughter weight), animal butter; 8th place - hosiery, fish catch; 11th place - cars, cement; 12th place - woolen fabrics, shoes; 14th place - paper and cardboard, granulated sugar (from domestic raw materials), vegetable oil.

The core of Russia's economic potential is its people. In terms of population, Russia is in 9th place in the world. The level of education and professional training of Russian citizens is such that, according to foreign partners from various countries, they are capable of solving any technical and economic problems, adapting to different conditions industrial and commercial activities. The higher education system in the country continues to train reliable and promising personnel for modern trends development of human society in line with global trends. One of the proofs of the high professional level of Russian specialists in the field of natural sciences is the high demand for them in almost all developed countries. In recent years, more and more Russian citizens with education and work experience in the field of management, marketing, finance are invited to companies from different countries operating in the Russian markets or with Russian partners.

However, the country has not yet found a mechanism for the most efficient use of human resources. In general, the problem of the effectiveness of their use sharply escalated in the 1990s, since Russia began to lose many billions of dollars on the "leakage of human capital" from the country, i.e. it faced a problem that had previously been considered unique to developing countries. A general favorable background for solving this problem can be the establishment in the country of an appropriate social climate, characteristic of societies with a developed economy.

The rich natural energy potential provides Russia with a very advantageous position. It is still the only major world power that fully meets its energy needs from its own resources. In terms of mineral fuel reserves per capita, Russia is ahead of all large industrialized countries. Under these conditions, the trade in energy carriers and mineral raw materials is still the main real profile of the country's specialization in the international division of labor, and this can be assessed not so much as a weakness, but as an important temporary strategic advantage from the national and global points of view.

The role of the fuel and energy complex (FEC) in the development of the world economy is not decreasing, but increasing. The modern economy, despite the intensive introduction of energy-saving technologies, continues to steadily increase the scale of public and individual energy needs. According to experts, the volume of world production and consumption of primary energy carriers at the beginning of the XXI century. will exceed 10 billion conditional tons. At the same time, 75% of consumption will fall on developed countries, where only one sixth of the world's population lives.

Developed countries play an increasingly significant role in Russian foreign trade. Although Russia is traditionally "tied" to the economies of the CIS countries, its foreign trade turned out to be focused on the countries of the EU, North America and, in general, states with a developed market economy. This orientation is largely due to the content side of export-import operations. The fact is that the predominant items of Russian exports are still energy resources and unprocessed metal products.

The role of the CIS countries remains important geographically, but is not stable economically. Meanwhile, from the point of view of a strategic perspective, the preservation of the nearest neighbors as the most important partners cannot but become an important stabilizing factor both for Russia and for other CIS countries.

One of the most important conditions for the development of a national market economy is a stable financial system of the country. Any failures in the financial system immediately affect the entire economy. The degree of openness of the national economy and the level of its involvement in world economic relations can be easily traced, primarily through the financial system. Therefore, the influence of certain events in the world economy on internal economic processes also occurs directly through the financial system. In a short time, in Russia, simultaneously with the process of privatization of state property, a banking system was created on the basis of joint-stock commercial banks headed by the Bank of the Russian Federation. Banks and other financial institutions have become active participants in the formation of a market economy in Russia. Gradually formed stock market. Shares of Russian companies began to circulate not only on Russian, but also on foreign stock exchanges. The latter became possible, in particular, due to the fact that the foreign exchange market began to work and the Russian ruble was freely convertible on the territory of the country and the CIS. Russia entered the world capital market, and foreign investors began to actively acquire securities of Russian companies and banks. A significant share of the stock market was occupied by various government securities, which were especially popular with both domestic and foreign market participants, since they were distinguished by high profitability and the lowest risk.