Politics and business

Governments often make decisions that affect the international business environment to put pressure on other countries to make political changes. Sanctions help stop businesses trading with those countries, either by buying their goods or selling products too them.

International sanctions are actions taken by countries against others for political reasons.

Economic sanctions are penalties applied by one country (or group of countries) on another. Economic sanctions include import duties. This means that imports from outside the European Union (EU) into the UK must be declared to HM Revenue & Customs.

http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?type=RESOURCES&itemId=1077947854

Well known examples of economic sanctions include the United Nations sanctions against South Africa and the United States embargo against Cuba (1962-present).

Other ways that governments can affect the international business environment include protectionism or buying and selling land in poor countries.

Protectionism is the economic policy of restraining trade between states, through methods such as tariffs on imported goods and a variety of other restrictive government regulations designed to discourage imports.

The Cambodian government has sold almost half of its land- without reference to the people who live there.