Fernando Jimenez

American Samoa is a signatory land and honors the Hague Convention of 1961; therefore, there are procedures that allow for a uniform process for special documentation. This uniformity should ease the document process greatly. This process is known as Apostille and this type of legalization or certification is used for countries that are party to the Hague Convention. The Apostille is a stamp in the shape of a square. It should be filled in the official language of the issuing authority. Each Apostille is registered and contains the issue date and unique number. The Apostille is issued by the authorities for documents. Authorities from the Samoa require an Apostille certification on government or notarized documents.

In today’s world, economic life has become more complex and diversified. The aim of international trade is to increase production and to raise the standard of living of the people.There are some major reasons for countries to engage in international trade. International trade helps citizens of one nation to consume and enjoy the possession of goods produced in some other nation. The primary reason for engaging in international trade is the unequal distribution of resources among nations. Resources are concentrated in some nations and other nations have no option but to trade them (unless a cheaper or better local alternative is found). In general, a nation satisfies the demands for a scarce resource by trading with a more abundant local resource. International trade offers some advantages to a nation. By exploiting its comparative advantage, a nation can specialize in producing certain good and services more efficiently and at low opportunity cost and this allows an economics of scale (large-scale production). International trade also breaks down domestic monopolies and keeps the prices in check (due to competition). It also results in better product quality and generates employment.