What is business correspondence in foreign trade
Business correspondence in foreign trade is a letter written in formal language, usually used when writing from one business organization to another, or for correspondence between such organizations and their customers, clients and other external parties, and the two organizations or parties are of two different countries or regions.
Words features
Business writing strives to be crisp and succinct rather than evocative or creative; it stresses specificity and accuracy. So the words should be more formal than normal and conventional english. However, writing that is too formal can alienate readers, and an attempt to be overly casual may come across as insincere or unprofessional. What’s more, it is perfectly appropriate to refer to yourself as I and to the reader as you. When stating your opinion, use I; when presenting company policy, use we.
Sentence features
It is better to minimize the use of the passive voice, because business correspondence should be written to achieve a style that is so clear that their messages cannot be misunderstood. Although the passive voice is sometimes necessary, often it not only makes the writing dull but also can be ambiguous or overly impersonal. Besides, passive voice requires longer verb forms, building longer sentences that are tiresome to read.
Text features
- Accuracy and concise
A good business letter does not ramble on; it supplies all pertinent information in a clear and concise manner. Consequently, the number of written words must be frugal with in every sentence. However, the letter cannot turn out as an endless series of short, choppy sentences — "concise" does not have to mean "blunt". Morover, it is necessary to state the purpose in the opening sentence of the letter because there are really not enough hours in the day for a busy person to read each letter slowly, word for word.
- No mistake
Even though someone may be skimming the letter, do not assume that he or she won’t notice any spelling or grammatical mistakes. Business correspondence represents not only you but the company. A badly written business letter can bring a bad image to your copmany. So no mistake is allowed.
Example
Dear Sirs,
We are in receipt of your letter of 8th June and regret to note your complaint respecting the Woolen Goods we sent you by s.s. Dongfeng.
We have booked up the matter in our records, and so far as we can find, the goods in question were in first-class condition when they left here, as was evidenced by the Bill of Lading. It is therefore quite obvious that the damage complained of must have taken place in transit. In the circumstances, we are apparently not liable for the damage and would advise you to claim on the shipping company who should be held responsible.
At any rate, we thank you for bringing this to our attention and if you feel it necessary we shall be pleased to take the matter up on your behalf with the shipping company concerned.
Yours faithfully,
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