Trading Places

Who has petrodollars to spend? Where can you sell construction equipment? Jewelry? Management consulting? And where is the market that grew an astounding 55,414 percent last year? Read on.

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BRAZIL

More than $24.6 billion in American goods were sold to Brazil last year, up 28 percent from 2006. This is a reflection of the country's decade of prosperity. "After several boom-and-bust periods, we're seeing the most sustained economic growth since the 1970s," says Camille Richardson, the U.S. trade officer there. Oil and gas companies and other customers acquired dozens of helicopters, while Brazil's 190 million consumers bought iPods and other branded lifestyle products. But novice exporters should proceed with caution. Under Brazil's complex tax and tariff structure, the cost of a landed product can jump 40 percent to 60 percent.

CENTRAL AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

These markets are growing fast, and many of them have signed free trade agreements with the U.S. Plus, they're only a few hours away by plane. "In some ways, Central American countries have been overlooked by U.S. exporters," says John Murphy of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. "There's a big opportunity there for smaller companies." Some places to watch:

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

It's a market roughly the size of New York City in terms of population. Exports to the island hit $6.1 billion last year -- roughly on a par with those to Turkey and South Africa -- led by computers, alcoholic beverages, and food products.

PANAMA

Panama boasts the fastest-growing GDP in Latin America, estimated by the IMF at 8.5 percent in 2007. Its service sector is strong, and the U.S. dollar is in wide circulation. Exports to Panama have more than doubled since 2002, to $3.7 billion last year. And more growth is forecast as the country embarks on a $5.25 billion plan to expand the Panama Canal and the U.S. and Panama move closer to ratifying a free trade agreement.

GUATEMALA AND HONDURAS

These neighbors have come a long way since the political turbulence of the 1980s. Both have growing economies, and both consumed more than $4 billion in American exports last year, led by large gains in sales of metals, food products, and textiles.

CHINA

China likes to support its homegrown companies, which makes for an uneven playing field for U.S. exporters. Expect ever-changing customs policies, a thicket of business licensing rules, and, in the high-tech sector, unfamiliar standards and requirements. Hassles aside, the Chinese are developing a taste for all things American -- professional and business services in particular. U.S. exports to China set a record in 2007: $65 billion.

COLOMBIA

Continuing unrest in the country, the recent conflict with Ecuador and Venezuela, and the fact that a free trade pact is stalled in Congress are certainly reasons to think that Colombia is not an attractive trading partner. And yet exports to the country reached $8.6 billion in 2007. "The government that is in charge right now has been implementing market-opening policies that have really made a difference in the importation of machinery," says Ana Arias, a Latin America specialist at Hytrol, a Jonesboro, Arkansas, company that makes conveyor equipment for factories.

EGYPT

Though petty corruption is still endemic in Egypt, the World Bank's official reformer of the year has reduced tariffs, cut red tape at its ports, and privatized banks. Imports from the U.S. stood at $5.3 billion last year. Opportunities exist in Egypt's booming IT sector and in transportation. Following a series of accidents, Egypt has committed more than $1.5 billion to upgrade its rail system.

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