When exporting, importing, investing abroad or establishing strategic alliances with foreign producers, it’s critical to understand the hidden risks. If not, an unethical supplier can result in endless lawsuits and poor market opportunities can generate tremendous losses. On the other hand, correctly grasping foreign market wants, needs and abilities can lead to great success. To make your job easier, consider the following factors.

Raising capital at the lowest possible cost, formulating capital structures and utilizing such capital to produce maximum value for your organization is a vital component to your success and the viability, profitability and future growth prospects of your firm. So when expansion plans consists of raising capital in a foreign currency there are various factors to consider to ensure your organization minimizes its risk.

If there is one thing you can count on in global currency markets, and in emerging markets in particular, it is exchange rate volatility. The present sell-off in emerging market stocks and currencies, as evidenced by the chart below compiled with data from Oanda.com, is certainly eye opening, but in no way unprecedented. What is unprecedented, however, is the grim prognosis perhaps facing these nations’ economies.

The Polar Code, an international regime covering a range of shipping-related matters for vessels operating in polar waters, was adopted by the International Maritime Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations headquartered in London, England. Effective January, 1, 2017, the rules regulate navigation in waters in and around the Arctic and Antarctica, and include ship design, construction and equipment; operational and training concerns; search and rescue; and the protection of the unique environment and eco-systems of the polar regions.

New signs of life have begun to emerge in China’s restive domestic M&A market. The past years of relative quiet are giving way to political and economic reforms and China’s new normal economy. For example, at the end of 2014, 1,536 transactions were closed for an average value of $131 million.

Small- and medium-sized businesses that import into the U.S. are under the same obligations to comply with complex laws and regulations as large multinational corporations. Get something wrong and your company could face costly delays and margin-killing penalties. Corporate officers and executives could even be held personally liable for import-related mistakes. Thankfully, implementing compliance measures is easier and less costly than many small business owners and managers realize.

A new federal initiative is underway to leverage government data to help improve decision-making throughout the economy, and to facilitate the release of more information to the public. “As ‘America’s Data Agency,’ we are working to unleash more of the Commerce Department’s data to strengthen our nation’s economic growth,” says U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker.

The United States has less than 5 percent of the world’s population. Yet the World Bank says the country accounts for 20 percent of global GDP output. For years our large market satisfied the goals of American manufacturers. But that has changed. And when considering CIA data that indicates our growth rates are lower than 150 other countries, it becomes obvious that U.S. companies need to seek faster growing markets abroad.

There has been much press about the growth in U.S. exports. And for good reason. Nearly 95 percent of the world’s consumers live outside the United States and approximately 74 percent of the global commerce now occurs abroad. In turn, American companies that become exporters often grow faster, hire more employees, and benefit the U.S. economy to a greater extent.