Research Guides: Marketing Subject Guide: Finding Country Information Online

Reference Books

The Statesman's Yearbook 2023 by Palgrave Palgrave Macmillan (Editor)
ISBN: 9781349960552
Publication Date: 2022-09-01

This key resource includes:

Key historical events
Population
Economy
City profiles
Social statistics
Defense
International relations
Recent elections and current leaders
Energy and natural resources
Industry
Climate information
Energy and natural resources
International trade
Religion and culture

The Statesman's Yearbook also includes a fact sheet on every country in the world.

The 2022 edition is now available as an e-book (the 2023 version is currently only available as a print book in the library). Click on the link to access the pages you need.

Please note that we have a single-user license. If the e-book is not available, try again later.

The statesman's yearbook 2022 : the politics, cultures and economies of the world
Call Number: Coquitlam: JA 8 S7 2022
ISBN: 9781349960453
Publication Date: 2022
This classic reference work presents a political, economic and social account of every country of the world together with facts and analysis. The 2022 edition includes: revised and updated biographical profiles of all current leaders; extensive updates to national economic overviews; accurate historical introductions; comprehensive coverage of major international organizations and think tanks; every country ranked for the ease of doing business.

Country Information Online

Background Notes
US State Department : Provides information on geographic entities and international organizations.
BBC News - Country Profiles
History, politics, economic information, and background on key institutions in countries and territories.
CIA World Factbook (Central Intelligence Agency)
Information on the history, people, government, economy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 266 world entities.(NOTE: Some instructors ask that you consider the information with care, as there may be a particular American bias and point of view.)
Country Insights (Global Affairs Canada)
Links to websites for virtually every country in the world. Contains cultural information which answer intercultural questions from a Canadian and a local point of view.
Country Studies - Library of Congress
Presents a description and analysis of the historical setting and the social, economic, political, and national security systems and institutions of countries throughout the world.
Foreign Government Resources on the Web (University of Michigan Library)
History links to government websites, constitutions, economic information, statistics, etc..
Handbook of Latin American Studies
An annotated bibliography on Latin America. Includes coverage of the Caribbean.
International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Provides access to country reports that are based on discussions between IMF Staff and country officials which focus on economic growth, developments and policies.
NationMaster.com
Provides worldwide statistics with country comparisons using graphs and maps.
Nations (Library of Congress, Law Library)
Links to legal and government resources of individual countries, often with English translations.

Websites

Statista This link opens in a new window
Statista provides statistical data on many topics including media, business, politics, and society. Sources include market reports, trade publications, scientific journals, and government databases.
Business Market Research Collection This link opens in a new window
Includes Hoover's Company Profiles which does include many large international companies. US subsidiaries are often found higher in the results list than foreign parent companies - so be sure to search for the precise company name you are after: e.g., search for Royal Dutch Shell to find the Dutch parent company.

Company Profiles
Profiles of larger Canadian and US companies via the Library's "Business Source Ultimate" subscription.
SWOT Analyses
Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of North American companies via the Library's "Business Source Ultimate" subscription.
Research and Business Intelligence
Industry sector data, financial benchmarks, labour trends and business statistics.
SEDAR
Contains Canadian securities filings and may be used to find public company profiles and annual reports.
Federally Incorporated Companies
Canadian company information.
Canadian Trade Index
Directory of manufacturers, exporters and distributors in Canada. Search by company, product description, trademark and province.
Annual Reports
Annual reports of primarily U.S. publicly traded companies.
EDGAR
Company filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Fraser's Canadian Trade Directory
Search by company, product or brand name.

Corporate websites, publicly traded companies: The publicly traded corporate website can yield up useful product information, annual reports, financial statements, mission statements, code of ethics, etc. Sometimes these are distinct from a company's public-facing website, e.g., Google's Alphabet parent company site or may be a click or two down from the retail homepage, e.g., Indigo's Investor Relations / Amazon's Investor Relations pages.

Note: Privately owned companies do not have a statutory obligation to share their financials publicly. This sort of information may not be available or may be of a very select nature.

Statista This link opens in a new window
Statista provides statistical data on many topics including media, business, politics, and society. Sources include market reports, trade publications, scientific journals, and government databases.

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Canada 2017 Industry Classifications -
Classification Codes - Include the NAICS Canada, the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) and classifications from other countries.

Industry and Market Research

Industry Reports
Industry report from all over the world accessed through Business Source Ultimate
Market Research Reports
Market Research Reports are accessible through Business Source Ultimate
Canadian Industry Statistics
Canadian And U.S. industry trends
Research and Business Intelligence
Industry sector data, financial benchmarks, labour trends and business statistics.
Overview of Industries
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics,. Includes Industries at a Glance which gives profiles of major U.S. industries.
Statistics Canada
Provide information on population, demography and industry information
U.S. Economic Census
Gives economic census data by sector.
Small Business Accelerator (SBA)
Provides guides to industry-specific resources such as Clothing Retailer or Coffee Shop Business, with an emphasis on BC; sample plans and templates are also available.

BC Stats
Contains a range of economic, socio-economic and geographic information pertaining to British Columbia.
Canada's Gateway to Commercial Real Estate
Provides listings of commercial properties for lease/sale. Each listing includes demographic information for the immediate neighbourhood, which includes daytime population, number of local businesses, and household information/composition.
Data - Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada's key socio-economic database. Updated daily and provides access to a large range of statistics on Canadian economics, demographics and social series.
Census Profile
Find the latest census information for various levels of geography, including provinces, census metropolitan areas, communities and census tracts.
Statistics Canada
Statistics from Canada's national statistical agency. Organized into three broad subject areas: demographic/social, economic, and socio-economic.

Statista This link opens in a new window
Statista provides statistical data on many topics including media, business, politics, and society. Sources include market reports, trade publications, scientific journals, and government databases.

Passport This link opens in a new window
Demographic and economic data on every country in the world (with forecasts), as well as statistics, market reports, company profiles and information sources for country, market, consumer, and lifestyle profiling. This database was previously referred to as the Global Market Information Database or GMID.
Statista This link opens in a new window
Statista provides statistical data on many topics including media, business, politics, and society. Sources include market reports, trade publications, scientific journals, and government databases.
Business Source Ultimate Country Report This link opens in a new window
Provides you with an overview of countries political, economic, legal, environmental etc. structures. Click on the COUNTRY tab or enter the name of the country in the box labelled "Browse for"

Background Notes
US State Department : Provides information on geographic entities and international organizations.
BBC News Country Profiles
Full profiles provide an instant guide to history, politics and economic background of countries and territories, and background on key institutions.
Country Insights
"The Centre [for intercultural Learning] is Canada's largest provider of cross-cultural and international training services for internationally-assigned government and private sector personnel."
Country Studies
This Library of Congress site covers information regarding the culture and society of various countries
HLAS Online: Handbook of Latin American Studies
A bibliography on Latin America consisting of books, journal articles, etc. Selected by scholars; covers a range of disciplines in the humanities and social sciences.
World Factbook
Information on the history, people, government, economy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 266 world entities.(NOTE: Some instructors ask that you consider the information with care, as there may be a particular American bias and point of view.)