Counter-trade is an umbrella (general) term covering all forms of trade whereby a seller (e.g. an exporter) or an assignee is required to accepted goods or services from the buyer (e.g. the importer or the importing country) as either full or partial payment. International counter-trade is a practice whereby a supplier commits contractually as a condition of sale to reciprocate and undertake certain specified commercial initiatives that compensate and benefit the buyer. While the manner in which the transaction is structured and the assets are exchanged may vary in different compensatory transactions such as barter, buyback, counter-purchase, and offset the distinctive feature of these arrangements is the mandatory performance element that is either required by the importer or is made necessary by competitive considerations. It is a peculiar form of transaction allegedly popular in less developed countries and in centrally planned economies. It is then often associated with policy objectives in these economies.