貿易英会話
LESSON 3 SELECTING THE MARKET （市場の選択）A. Dialog
A businessman calls by appointment① at the office of an official of the United States Department of Commerce. ①アポイントを取って Businessman:
How do you do? I'm here to get your help in
selecting a foreign market for my product. Official: Fine. Have a seat. I have your letter, and I've made some notes. You'll also probably① want to gather information about selling and promotion② methods and about channels of distribution.③
①たぶん
②販売促進
③流通チャネル Businessman:
That's right. But it seems to me the first question
is, how can I find out what countries need or want my product? Official: We have quite a lot of import and export information. And I can give you figures① on population, production, consumption, and foreign exchange reserves②. I can also provide some data on the incomes③ of your possible customers.
①統計 ②外貨準備高 ③所得 Businessman: That's excellent. I want to get an idea of the purchasing power① in various countries.
①購買力 Official: But you're also going to have to give some attention to trade restrictions①.
①貿易規制 Businessman:
You mean tariffs and quotas? Official: Yes, but you have to get import licenses① and exchange permits②, too. Certain specifications③ must be met, also.
①輸入ライセンス ②為替許可 ③仕様 Businessman: I see. Another thing I'm wondering about is distribution patterns and retail outlets①. ①小売店 Official: You can get much of that information from the reports of trade missions①. You'll find there's a general trend of change from specialty stores② to department stores and shopping centers and from small stores to self-service stores and supermarkets.
①貿易使節団 ②専門店 Businessman: Could
I test a market by mailing my catalog and price list? Official: Yes, and you might display your product abroad at trade fairs① and trade centers②.
①見本市 ②貿易センター Businessman: And that way I could size up my competitors. I already have some directories① and catalogs of products similar to mine.
①ディレクトリ Official:
That's wise. Also, export magazines and trade
publications will help you to compare specifications, functions, quality,
packaging, and appearance. Businessman: I'll want to look at my competitors' promotional literature①, too.
①販促資料 Official:
Your local bank can help by getting that for you
through its correspondent bank①
in the other country. Businessman: Oh. I wouldn't have thought of that. Well, I can see that I'm going to have trouble① arriving at a proper export price.
①～するのに苦労する Official:
Yes, you will. I think it's wise to quote an FOB
price, plus estimated delivery costs to the principal port of entry. Businessman:
What do you include in delivery costs? Official: These include transportation costs or freight, packing and insurance, tariffs, taxes, and warehousing①.
①保管 Businessman:
Can I add these to the cost of the product? Official:
That will depend on the terms of sale. B. Terminology Practice
catalog: in this sense, a book with pictures and descriptions of
products, often distributed free to potential customers as a means of
promotional advertising The
catalog is very colorful. I
selected my radio from a catalog.
The
catalog also gave prices. consumption: in this sense, use of a product Consumption
has increased this year. Consumption
will depend on
economic conditions. The
decisions of the separate consumers determine the total consumption. correspondent bank: a bank in another country with which a local bank carries
on business① ①営業を行う Your
correspondent bank can help locate customers. Credit
information is available from correspondent banks. Foreign
exchange reserves are known by the correspondent bank.
customer: the buyer of a product Isn't
this company one of your customers? We
have some new customers. department store: a store which sells a great variety of① different products, displayed in separate departments
①多種多様な You
may have bought your furniture at a department store.
Most
department stores have clothing. Even
food may be bought at department stores.
directory: in this sense, a book which lists producers of given① products
①ある The
names of the manufacturers are in the directory. The
directories may be seen at your library. Trade directories② list many producers. ②商工名鑑 distribution:
getting
a product to its many customers Selling
directly to the customer is a method of distribution. Some
companies use an agent as a channel of distribution. Isn't
distribution one of your major problems? distribution
pattern: where
and how much of a product is sold As
the income of a country rises, the distribution patterns change. Age groups affect① distribution patterns. The
distribution pattern is influenced by transportation. exchange
permit:
government permission to use money for imports If
foreign exchange reserves are low, an exchange permit is required. Your
agent will be familiar with exchange permits. Most
countries do not use exchange permits. FOB:
free on board ship (all charges and expenses from that point are additional)
FOB
is a shipping term. It
is important to say whether you are shipping FOB. Most
shippers prefer FOB. foreign
exchange reserves: money
or currency available for buying and importing goods from other countries Some
countries are short of foreign exchange reserves. If
foreign exchange reserves are low, money cannot be spent freely for imports. The
government determines the supply of foreign exchange reserves. import license: a
license to import products Has
he received an import license? It'll
take some time to get an import license. He
still has his import license. port
of entry:
place where imports arrive in a country and pass through customs Use
the nearest port of entry. Which
port of entry are you using? There
will be charges after the product leaves the port of entry. promotion: in this sense, a means of furthering① sales by attracting attention to a product
①促進する Promotion methods vary② according to the market. ②変わる Advertising
is one means of promotion. Sometimes
promotion is done entirely by salesmen. promotional
literature: printed
material①
to describe a product ①印刷物 Advertising
in printed form would be promotional literature. A
description of the product is generally included in promotional literature. The
price of a product may be included in promotional literature. purchasing
power:
extent of ability to purchase Taxes
sometimes affect
purchasing power. Foreign
exchange reserves also determine purchasing power. Isn't
purchasing power constantly changing? retail
outlet:
a place where sale is made direct to customer Your
neighborhood store is a retail outlet. Supermarkets
are retail outlets. Most
department stores qualify as retail outlets. self-service
store: a
store where the customer serves himself and then pays a cashier Self-service
stores cost less to operate. Money
saved by self-service stores may reduce the price of the product. Self-service stores often sell groceries①. ①雑貨 specialty
store: a
store which sells only a particular product or related products Often
clothing is bought at specialty stores. Sporting
goods are sometimes sold at specialty stores. Your
furniture may have come from specialty stores. specifications:
conditions
agreed to between the buyer and seller with regard to the merchandise itself
as well as to terms of payment and delivery Standards
and specifications are similar. Specifications
may be made to meet a particular use. The
product does not meet the specifications. terms
of sale:
the conditions of an agreement between buyer and seller It's
important to agree on terms of sale before a shipment is made. Terms
of sale may vary greatly. You
may find the terms of sale satisfactory. trade
fair:
a place where products from many companies are displayed; usually set up for
a brief period The
trade fair opened today. We
displayed our product at several trade fairs. Many
customers attended the trade fair. warehouse:
store a product for a period of time Warehousing
is included in the cost of an item. Warehousing
isn't always necessary. It is necessary to warehouse goods if delivery is not made at once. |