What is International Business?

International Business is the production/manufacturing or sale of products or services between countries. There are many ways a business can be international. A business is international if:

• It produces the goods locally and sells them internationally.

• It produces the goods internationally and sells them locally.

• It produces the goods internationally and sells both locally and internationally.

Businesses usually produce goods overseas or outsource cheap labor due to lower labor costs or taxes, and they sell their products and services in the global market to gain a larger audience, new customers, and increased revenue.

But what are the factors that affect international businesses?

The most common factors that affect international businesses are the following:

• Shifting economic stability

• Different tax codes

• Inflation and currency exchange

The 4 most common accounting challenges of  International Business:

Different tax codes

Companies wanting to expand internationally have to keep up with the different and ever-changing tax policies at home and abroad. Dealing with indirect taxation, including VAT, and sales and taxes can be very challenging. Tax rules and rates vary across countries and it might get very difficult to keep up with the varying policies. Knowing when to collect taxes, and what rates apply to different countries can be very confusing and difficult to keep track of when you expand your business into the international market. Keeping up with these details and ensuring that the information is up to date is usually done using spreadsheets. 

Compliance

Navigating through the regulatory environment in an international market can be messy and challenging. The roles of different government agencies often overlap, making it difficult to know who is responsible for what. Adding to this, the myriad legal statutes, banking regulations, and other accounting rules that specify how that business must operate and you begin to realize how big an undertaking international expansion can become.

Compliance may be the biggest problem companies face while entering the international market. It is very commonly seen that regulations are misinterpreted and can cost heavy penalties. In such cases, it would be easier to have a local expert at hand who ensures that the rules are being followed. 

Accounting Data Consolidation

Every country’s data should be maintained in a certain manner considering its regional and local accounting standards and guidelines. The aspects of accounting data include revenue, expenses, assets, and liabilities. These may vary from country to country. It is very challenging to know all the laws of the land of different countries and abide by them. Sometimes, it may also cost you a fortune if these rules are not thoroughly followed. When doing business internationally, you have to make sure you have a thorough understanding of all these laws or have an expert by your side who will closely look into all of these matters so that your company doesn’t have to pay heavy fines.

Currency Exchange and Inflation

Another extremely common issue with international businesses is navigating foreign exchange rates. The value of a US dollar in your country won’t always equal the same amount in other countries’ currencies, nor will the value of currency consistently be worth the same amount of goods and services in those places.

The best you can do is to accustom yourself to currency exchange rates between your country and the ones where you plan to set up your business. 

It’s also crucial to monitor the inflation rates of the countries you are trying to set up your business. Inflation rates vary across countries and can severely impact materials and labor costs, as well as product pricing in those countries. Understanding and closely monitoring these rates for local as well as international countries can provide you with all the necessary information about the value of your company’s product across various locations over time and help prevent international trade problems.

Final Words

If you want to expand your business globally, it’s important to prepare for international business challenges that everyone faces when setting up a business internationally. However, that doesn’t mean that it’s not an opportunity for enormous organizational growth and expansion into a diverse audience.

To prepare for those challenges, consume your news intake and closely follow foreign politics, make close connections in countries where you hope to expand your business, invest in accounting companies who are well versed in global accounting rules, hire interpreters to overcome language barriers and consider taking a global business course to develop your international business skills and prepare for today’s nuanced, interconnected business world.