Solutions depending on subscription level will vary from the use of forex calculators, currency converters and insurance calculators, to integrated online solutions with particular financial institutions, thereby integrating service into process.  Solutions currently under development include online letters of credit, electronic submission of bank documents, online trade finance and insurance (marine and credit) service, requests, bidding and acceptance. 

Registered exporters will be able to get direct access to basic export assistance services provided by TradeMate, which include:

• Manage information about financial intermediaries
• Finance for foreign market development
• Finance for production expansion to meet foreign market orders
• Payment processing and/or bank guarantees
• Credit insurance
• Trade risk management
• Foreign exchange risk management (including forward cover)
• E-commerce facilitation
• Consultancy related to customs duty refunds and drawbacks
• Consultancy related to accessing trade agreements

In Financial Trade Services, users will be able to:

• Manage information about financial intermediaries by

• Identifying and entering intermediaries information into a contact management system,
• Promoting and giving access to
  • Services offered by the TradeMate Trade Promotion Organisation
  • Motivational material
  • Destination information
  • Businesses and services database
  • Image library
  • Maps
  • Export/import opportunities
• Undertake proactive marketing activities:
  • E-mail newsletters
  • Missions
  • Familiarisation visits
  • Promotion and participation opportunities
• Service enquiries through
  • Web site
  • Manned telephone service
  • Automated telephone service
  • Personal contact at a variety of locations
• Track activity
• Evaluate effectiveness

Finance for foreign market development

Exporters will have access to directories containing the contact details of financial service providers that provide finance for foreign market development through a Service Providers database.

Finance for production expansion to meet foreign market orders

The exporters will have access to directories containing the contact details of financial service providers that provide finance for production expansion through a Service Providers database.

Advice on finance services will include:

• Information on short term facilities, and
• Information on medium-/long-term facilities

Payment processing and/or bank guarantees

Exporter will need advice and guidelines on the use of the most common and frequently used export financing instruments (methods of payment) which includes:

• Cash in advance
• Documentary letter of credit and drafts
• Buyer’s or seller’s credit
• Factoring, forfeiting and confirming
• Countertrade

Credit insurance

The main purpose of export credit insurance is to offer protection to those exporters of goods and services who sell their products on credit terms. Protection is needed against non-payment either due to insolvency of the importer (commercial risk) or political events (political or country risk).

Exporters will be assisted with advice and guidance on the most widely used types of export credit insurance which are:

• Short-term export credit insurance;
• Medium- and long-term export credit insurance;
• Investment insurance;
• External trade insurance;
• Exchange risk insurance.

Trade risk management

Exporters will be assisted and advised on both the Commercial and Political risks that face them.

Commercial risks generally include:

• The insolvency of the importer;
• The default on payment by a private buyer at the end of the credit period or after some specified period following the expiry of the agreed term of credit;
• Non-acceptance of goods delivered to the buyer where such goods comply with any valid contracts.

Political risks encompass all political events that have an impact on any contractual relationships covered by civil law, including:

• The cancellation or non-renewal of an insured exporter’s export licence after a contract has been signed;
• War and other such disturbances in the buyer’s country of domicile that affect the fulfillment of the contract;
• Foreign currency conversions risks; that is, difficulties and delays in remitting money from the buyer’s country, including the losses arising from moratorium on external debt issued by that country’s government;
• Transfer risks, where one country can freeze the locally-held assets (such as ships, aircraft or goods in warehouses) and bank accounts of another country;
• Any action of a foreign government that in some way hinders the enactment of the contract, including import/export restrictions, the confiscation or expropriation of goods, and nationalization;
• Transactions between private exporters and public buyers, that is, the default on payment by a state-owned enterprise.

Foreign exchange risk management (including forward cover)

International trade is associated with risks of uncertainties and volatilities in movements of foreign exchange rates and prices. Exporters and importers will be advised on how they can minimize their exposure to these types of risks by using forward or future markets.

E-commerce facilitation

E-commerce is most simply defined as doing business electronically. This includes the sharing of standardized unstructured or structured business information by any electronic means such as electronic mail or messaging, World Wide Web technology, electronic data interchange and automatic data capture.

Consultancy related to customs duty refunds and drawbacks

Surcharges of varying amounts are imposed on certain imported goods, but certain goods are exempt from payment of the surcharge.

Consultancy and advice will be provided on the claiming of refunds and applications for drawbacks of the following items which exempt from payment of surcharge:

• re-imported goods
• goods temporarily admitted for processing, repair, cleaning, reconditioning or for the manufacture of goods exclusively for export
• goods temporarily admitted for specific purposes; and
• goods temporarily admitted subject to exportation in the same state

Consultancy related to accessing trade agreements

Consultancy and advice will be provided on

• General Trade Agreements (such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
• Bilateral Agreements between South Africa and other countries