General Information

What types of risk information does The PRS Group have?
The PRS Group publishes two risk methodologies: Political Risk Services and the International Country Risk Guide.

What types of data do you sell?
We have data available from both Political Risk Services and the International Country Risk Guide. For more specific information, click on the appropriate product name.

Do you have information on risk for specific industries?
The PRS Group provides risk analysis for the political, financial, and economic situation in countries. We do not provide industry specific risk information, although the ICRG risk model can be tailored to the specific needs of your organization. Click here for more details.

I am traveling abroad. Do you have travel advisories?
We do not provide travel advisories. A good place to start looking is the US Dept. of State.

I am a professor. What data do you have?
We offer data for a number of economic, financial, and political variables. For a complete listing, click here.

I am recreating a study and heard you have the dataset I need.
It is very possible. Currently, our most popular academic dataset is the Researcher's Dataset. We also carry the IRIS Dataset and the Campbell Harvey Dataset.

I am a student studying a particular country, what information do you have?
We have a wide variety of economic, financial, and political data for individual countries. As a student, your best option is to check with your college or university's library and ask for the Political Risk Yearbook or go to CountryData.


Company Information

What is The PRS Group?
Since 1979, The PRS Group has been supplying businesses with information they need to succeed in the international arena. PRS publishes Political Risk Services and the International Country Risk Guide. 

Is Political Risk Services different?
Political Risk Services is a group of publications based on the Coplin-O'Leary forecasting system. PRS publishes a number of subscription services for both business and academic customers, including Country Reports.

Is International Country Risk Guide different?
The International Country Risk Guide, also published by PRS, is a completely separate product from Political Risk Services and uses an entirely different risk methodology.

Who uses your product?
PRS does not disclose the names of its customers without permission, but we can say that we supply risk information to over 80% of the top companies in the world (as ranked by Fortune).

Why should I choose The PRS Group?
When choosing someone to supply information of this importance, there is only one question to ask: Can I trust them? The PRS Group has been in the business of supplying information to help companies make critical business decisions for nearly 30 years. We have built a reputation as a provider of the highest quality data and analysis available anywhere.


Political Risk Services

How is PRS different from other services?
PRS is the only service based on the Coplin-O'Leary risk rating methodology. It is the only service that offers forecasts based on alternative political scenarios. This allows you to plan for the most likely risks you may encounter, but prepare for the best or worst/case scenarios.

How often are reports updated?
PRS' Country Reports are updated at various times throughout each year, although events in some countries may dictate more frequent updates than in other countries. Our reporting services, such as the World Service, are updated monthly. For more information, look at the specific product in the shopping cart.

How are risk ratings determined?
The risk ratings are determined by country experts and our editorial staff using the acclaimed Coplin-O'Leary methodology.


International Country Risk Guide

How is the ICRG different from other services?
The ICRG is completely separate from the Political Risk Services line of products. The ICRG's editor, Dr. Christopher McKee, uses a different methodology to arrive at risk ratings. The ICRG also supplies subscribers with the methodology and formulas used to calculate the risk ratings as well as the data needed to make the calculations. This allows subscribers to tailor the ratings system to their specific needs.

What do the political, financial, and economic risk ratings mean?
For a more detailed explanation of the ICRG ratings and methodology, click here.

How accurate are the forecasts?
Although a simple question, this is very difficult to answer. The Wall Street Journal and Barron's have both cited the ICRG's forecasts as among the most accurate in the industry. A number of academics have also spent years trying to determine the accuracy and validity of these forecasts. The most extensive research has been that done by Dr.Campbell Harvey at Duke University's Fuqua School of Business.

How often is the information updated?
The ICRG is updated monthly. In each new issue, data and statistical tables are completely updated and new text analysis is provided for approximately 25 countries.


CountryData

What data is available?
For a complete listing of the data available, click here.

How far back does historical data go?
Most of our ICRG historical ratings go back to 1984. For more information, click here.