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OTTAWA — Ever since the recession, Canadian companies have been pushed to open their wallets in order to open new export channels.

But the risks that come with tapping into some of those markets can present other challenges — and dangers, such as geopolitical instability.

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“What seems to be clear is that we’ve moved from a period of economic turbulence to an era increasingly imperiled by so-called political risks,” says Stuart Bergman, assistant chief economist at Export Development Canada, which Thursday launched its Country Risk Quarterly looking at global trade and investment prospects and their downsides.

“The aftermath of the economic crisis has seemingly given rise to a ‘new’, even more enigmatic threat to global business,” says Mr. Bergman, which has “made it difficult for market participants to get a handle on the costs to business posed by these risks.”

In particular, he points to the Russian-Ukraine crisis, as well as coups — such as those in Egypt, Niger and Thailand — and civil wars in Ivory Coast, Libya and Syria. There has also been renewed volatility on the Korean peninsula, recent terrorist attacks from Boston to Nairobi, and the “increasingly bold tactics” of the Islamic State, along with other groups.