The international trade between nations is an activity that can help the U.S. companies in general, and the Colorado ones in particular compete in markets abroad. For instance, one of the main purposes of the Global Advisory Council of the Mayor and City Council of Colorado Springs was presented as being helping to implement a global strategic plan with an emphasis on trade and investment. This also refers to assistance given to small and medium businesses in developing international trade opportunities or business opportunities. The organization is often referred to as GAC, and its Global Strategic team is known as GST. Because in general it is considered best to first develop domestic business before expanding offshore, The City of Colorado Springs Office of Economic Development has a directory of Business Resources in Colorado Springs, with offices and agencies which are able to assist small local business. The directory contains the names, phone numbers and addresses of all business Chambers, Environmental agencies, insurance companies, Finance, International Trade information as well as other categories.

Indubitably, trade development activities and operations by the government are essential in order to increase the ability of U.S. business to successfully compete in the large international field. But first, it is important to examine and understand a few basic concepts and related definitions. International trade refers to the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders. In the majority of countries, it represents a considerable share of the gross domestic product (GDP). International trade is in general not unlike domestic trade, since the motivation and the behavior of parties involved in a trade do not differ regardless of whether or not trade is across a border. The main difference is that international trade is usually more costly than domestic trade. The reason for that is that a border often imposes extra costs such as tariffs, time costs caused by border delays and costs related to country differences such as language, legal system or culture.

Another difference between domestic and international trade is the fact that production aspects such as capital and labor are frequently more mobile within a country than across borders. Therefore, international trade is mainly limited to trade in goods and services, and only to a lesser extent to trade in capital, labor or other production factors. As a result, trade in goods and services can be a substitute for trade in production factors.