ABSTRACT
A common feature of all the credit management methods used by export firms is the importance given to customer relations on the personal level. The personal relations depending on mutual confidence and the firm’s prestige play an important role throughout the export business. The results of the survey illustrate that legal security in international commercial transactions is provided to a large extent by internationally standardised collection and security methods for avoiding the risk of nonpayment, together with the personal relations between the business people depending on mutual confidence. The majority of the exporters use their personal contacts as the most favoured source of credit information. More than a quarter of the export firms define oral agreements which are not coupled to written documents as the most common contracting practice in international sales. The number of exporters who refrain from obtaining any form of security from the importer figures at 10 to 20%.
