                          PART A: SEASONALLY ADJUSTED
         EXHIBIT 8. IMPORTS OF GOODS BY END-USE CATEGORY AND COMMODITY
                                        
     (In millions of dollars.  Details may not equal totals due to seasonal
    adjustments and rounding. The Commodities in this exhibit are ranked on
        the month-to-month change within each major commodity grouping.
    (-) Represents zero or less than one half unit of measurement shown.)
                                        

Item(1)                                April        March         Monthly
                                       2004         2004          Change

Total, Balance of Payments Basis         118,931      118,707           224
Net Adjustments                              216          302           -86
Total, Census Basis                      118,714      118,405           309

Foods, feeds, and beverages                5,110        5,148           -38

Fish and shellfish                           916        1,023          -107
Cane and beet sugar                           30           61           -31
Vegetables                                   456          486           -29
Cocoa beans                                   63           89           -26
Tea, spices, etc.                             70           93           -23
Bakery products                              409          412            -3
Nonagricultural foods, etc.                   29           32            -3
Food oils, oilseeds                          187          187           (-)
Feedstuff and foodgrains                     180          174             6
Fruits, frozen juices                        506          497             9
Wine and related products                    495          482            14
Alcoholic beverages, excluding wine          327          312            15
Nuts                                          78           62            16
Dairy products and eggs                      124          105            19
Other foods                                  536          501            34
Green coffee                                 170          135            35
Meat products                                533          498            35

Industrial supplies and materials         30,824       31,832        -1,008

Crude oil                                  9,546       10,507          -961
Fuel oil                                   1,109        1,436          -327
Petroleum products, other                  1,703        1,847          -145
Other precious metals                        356          479          -123
Chemicals-organic                          1,174        1,274          -100
Copper                                       194          247           -54
Chemicals-fertilizers                        406          445           -39
Paper and paper products                     545          571           -25
Liquefied petroleum gases                    506          531           -25
Tobacco, waxes, etc                          320          338           -18
Nuclear fuel materials                       180          195           -16
Nonferrous metals, other                     143          154           -11
Zinc                                          77           85            -8
Materials, excluding chemicals               122          128            -6
Sulfur, nonmetallic minerals                  46           52            -6
Nickel                                       172          178            -6
Glass-plate, sheet, etc.                      92           98            -6
Hair, waste materials                         45           50            -5
Newsprint                                    242          246            -4
Blank tapes, audio & visual                  299          303            -4
Synthetic cloth                              377          380            -4
Cotton cloth, fabrics                        186          189            -3
Hides and skins                               10           11            -1
Finished textile supplies                    242          243            -1
Natural rubber                               125          125           (-)
Cotton, natural fibers                         9            8             1
Leather and furs                              72           69             3
Plastic materials                            781          778             4
Electric energy                               94           89             6
Nonmonetary gold                             318          312             6
Wool, silk, etc.                              68           61             7
Nontextile floor tiles                       198          190             8
Farming materials, livestock                  63           55             8
Synthetic rubber--primary                    113          104             8
Tin                                           31           22             9
Stone, sand, cement, etc.                    379          368            11
Industrial supplies, other                 1,464        1,450            14
Plywood and veneers                          219          204            15
Chemicals-other, n.e.c.                      534          516            18
Iron and steel, advanced                     457          437            20
Pulpwood and woodpulp                        260          233            27
Chemicals-inorganic                          371          339            33
Finished metal shapes                        794          759            35
Shingles, wallboard                        1,009          968            40
Lumber                                       691          649            43
Steelmaking materials                        413          368            45
Coal and related fuels                       190          133            58
Iron and steel products, n.e.c.              481          413            69
Bauxite and aluminum                         738          665            73
Iron and steel mill products               1,052          965            87
Gas-natural                                1,806        1,565           241

Capital goods, except automotive          27,763       27,239           523

Computer accessories                       5,295        5,105           190
Telecommunications equipment               2,541        2,375           166
Civilian aircraft                            934          838            96
Measuring, testing, control instruments      956          889            67
Industrial machines, other                 1,802        1,744            58
Metalworking machine tools                   577          523            54
Semiconductors                             2,298        2,249            49
Excavating machinery                         551          510            40
Laboratory testing instruments               239          214            25
Pulp and paper machinery                     335          317            18
Commercial vessels, other                     20            6            14
Drilling & oilfield equipment                139          127            12
Parts-civilian aircraft                      383          374             8
Wood, glass, plastic                         438          431             8
Specialized mining                            39           34             6
Nonfarm tractors and parts                    72           69             3
Industrial engines                           881          880             1
Photo, service industry machinery            913          912           (-)
Vessels, except scrap                        (-)          (-)           (-)
Marine engines, parts                         77           78            -1
Spacecraft, excluding military                 2            3            -1
Food, tobacco machinery                      154          157            -3
Electric apparatus                         2,235        2,238            -3
Computers                                  1,844        1,852            -8
Agricultural machinery, equipment            508          517            -9
Generators, accessories                      924          936           -12
Textile, sewing machines                      86          105           -19
Railway transportation equipment              82          103           -22
Medicinal equipment                        1,600        1,625           -25
Materials handling equipment                 590          627           -37
Business machines and equipment              619          669           -50
Engines-civilian aircraft                    630          732          -102

Automotive vehicles, parts, and engines   18,981       18,934            47

Consumer goods                            31,724       31,217           506

Artwork, antiques, stamps, etc.              921          538           383
Pharmaceutical preparations                4,938        4,733           205
TV's, VCR's, etc                           2,605        2,527            78
Furniture, household goods, etc.           1,787        1,711            76
Apparel, household goods - cotton          3,292        3,236            56
Toys/games/sporting goods                  1,976        1,941            35
Motorcycles and parts                        393          363            30
Apparel, household goods - wool              287          265            21
Apparel, textiles, nonwool or cotton       2,422        2,409            13
Household appliances                       1,110        1,099            10
Photo equipment                              136          127             9
Cookware, cutlery, tools                     440          431             9
Nursery stock, etc.                          123          120             3
Gem stones, other                            165          163             3
Records, tapes, and disks                    122          120             1
Rugs                                         152          151             1
Camping apparel and gear                     568          570            -2
Jewelry                                      897          903            -6
Musical instruments                          132          143           -12
Footwear                                   1,046        1,059           -13
Numismatic coins                              17           31           -15
Glassware, chinaware                         176          195           -19
Writing and art supplies                     947          968           -21
Toiletries and cosmetics                     387          415           -27
Books, printed matter                        299          326           -28
Apparel,household goods-nontextile           635          669           -34
Pleasure boats and motors                    207          250           -43
Stereo equipment, etc                        736          789           -52
Gem diamonds                               1,161        1,222           -61
Other household goods                      3,647        3,741           -94

Other goods                                4,314        4,035           279
                                        
                               _________________

Item(1)                                Year-to-date Year-to-date  Year-to-date
                                       2004         2003          Change

Total, Balance of Payments Basis         463,619      414,899        48,720
Net Adjustments                            1,013          960            53
Total, Census Basis                      462,606      413,939        48,667

Foods, feeds, and beverages               20,148       18,207         1,941

Fish and shellfish                         3,931        3,647           284
Cane and beet sugar                          148          182           -34
Vegetables                                 1,803        1,595           208
Cocoa beans                                  266          300           -34
Tea, spices, etc.                            368          311            57
Bakery products                            1,630        1,444           186
Nonagricultural foods, etc.                  126          133            -7
Food oils, oilseeds                          666          475           191
Feedstuff and foodgrains                     643          532           112
Fruits, frozen juices                      1,868        1,762           106
Wine and related products                  1,983        1,961            22
Alcoholic beverages, excluding wine        1,285        1,215            70
Nuts                                         292          247            44
Dairy products and eggs                      432          403            29
Other foods                                2,071        1,444           627
Green coffee                                 547          502            45
Meat products                              2,091        2,055            35

Industrial supplies and materials        122,138      106,081        16,058

Crude oil                                 39,539       34,608         4,931
Fuel oil                                   5,408        4,694           714
Petroleum products, other                  6,281        5,744           536
Other precious metals                      1,534        1,152           382
Chemicals-organic                          4,755        4,431           324
Copper                                       733          576           157
Chemicals-fertilizers                      1,784        1,536           249
Paper and paper products                   2,199        2,125            75
Liquefied petroleum gases                  2,235        1,892           342
Tobacco, waxes, etc                        1,273        1,205            68
Nuclear fuel materials                       680          947          -267
Nonferrous metals, other                     549          418           131
Zinc                                         350          291            60
Materials, excluding chemicals               491          485             6
Sulfur, nonmetallic minerals                 230          203            27
Nickel                                       614          375           239
Glass-plate, sheet, etc.                     358          297            61
Hair, waste materials                        178          158            19
Newsprint                                  1,011          981            30
Blank tapes, audio & visual                1,238          868           370
Synthetic cloth                            1,495        1,398            97
Cotton cloth, fabrics                        740          706            34
Hides and skins                               44           45            -1
Finished textile supplies                    967          861           106
Natural rubber                               483          362           121
Cotton, natural fibers                        29           33            -4
Leather and furs                             276          267             9
Plastic materials                          3,041        2,786           255
Electric energy                              371          505          -135
Nonmonetary gold                           1,339          804           535
Wool, silk, etc.                             248          226            22
Nontextile floor tiles                       780          750            30
Farming materials, livestock                 255          281           -26
Synthetic rubber--primary                    438          419            19
Tin                                           93           63            30
Stone, sand, cement, etc.                  1,504        1,292           212
Industrial supplies, other                 5,692        5,118           574
Plywood and veneers                          760          551           210
Chemicals-other, n.e.c.                    2,096        1,879           217
Iron and steel, advanced                   1,724        1,615           109
Pulpwood and woodpulp                        914          844            70
Chemicals-inorganic                        1,423        1,302           121
Finished metal shapes                      2,954        2,452           502
Shingles, wallboard                        3,660        2,568         1,093
Lumber                                     2,538        1,956           582
Steelmaking materials                      1,479          896           583
Coal and related fuels                       527          386           141
Iron and steel products, n.e.c.            1,650        1,359           291
Bauxite and aluminum                       2,708        2,275           433
Iron and steel mill products               3,522        2,775           746
Gas-natural                                6,949        6,322           627

Capital goods, except automotive         108,011       95,548        12,463

Computer accessories                      20,492       18,469         2,023
Telecommunications equipment               9,597        7,849         1,748
Civilian aircraft                          3,245        3,691          -446
Measuring, testing, control instruments    3,651        3,124           527
Industrial machines, other                 6,928        6,174           754
Metalworking machine tools                 2,150        2,015           135
Semiconductors                             8,925        8,139           786
Excavating machinery                       2,182        1,425           757
Laboratory testing instruments               884          698           186
Pulp and paper machinery                   1,416        1,200           216
Commercial vessels, other                    238           92           147
Drilling & oilfield equipment                523          772          -250
Parts-civilian aircraft                    1,512        1,517            -6
Wood, glass, plastic                       1,742        1,649            93
Specialized mining                           132          113            19
Nonfarm tractors and parts                   276          228            48
Industrial engines                         3,393        2,974           419
Photo, service industry machinery          3,740        3,347           394
Vessels, except scrap                          1            4            -3
Marine engines, parts                        268          240            29
Spacecraft, excluding military                 8           57           -48
Food, tobacco machinery                      606          533            72
Electric apparatus                         8,688        7,494         1,194
Computers                                  7,311        6,237         1,075
Agricultural machinery, equipment          2,014        1,494           520
Generators, accessories                    3,651        3,427           224
Textile, sewing machines                     383          345            37
Railway transportation equipment             352          360            -8
Medicinal equipment                        6,240        5,156         1,084
Materials handling equipment               2,378        2,048           329
Business machines and equipment            2,500        2,168           332
Engines-civilian aircraft                  2,587        2,511            76

Automotive vehicles, parts, and engines   74,507       68,576         5,931

Consumer goods                           121,236      109,730        11,506

Artwork, antiques, stamps, etc.            2,596        2,107           489
Pharmaceutical preparations               18,203       15,950         2,253
TV's, VCR's, etc                           9,899        7,523         2,376
Furniture, household goods, etc.           6,709        5,932           778
Apparel, household goods - cotton         13,037       13,370          -332
Toys/games/sporting goods                  7,656        7,782          -127
Motorcycles and parts                      1,328        1,128           200
Apparel, household goods - wool            1,085        1,060            25
Apparel, textiles, nonwool or cotton       9,466        9,092           374
Household appliances                       4,373        3,863           510
Photo equipment                              483          567           -84
Cookware, cutlery, tools                   1,671        1,649            22
Nursery stock, etc.                          474          407            67
Gem stones, other                            622          562            60
Records, tapes, and disks                    484          470            15
Rugs                                         590          557            33
Camping apparel and gear                   2,263        2,235            28
Jewelry                                    3,486        3,096           390
Musical instruments                          523          498            25
Footwear                                   4,142        4,084            58
Numismatic coins                             103          105            -2
Glassware, chinaware                         753          756            -2
Writing and art supplies                   3,674        3,454           220
Toiletries and cosmetics                   1,584        1,409           175
Books, printed matter                      1,219        1,144            75
Apparel,household goods-nontextile         2,389        2,142           247
Pleasure boats and motors                    906          802           103
Stereo equipment, etc                      2,916        2,320           595
Gem diamonds                               4,598        4,072           526
Other household goods                     14,003       11,594         2,410

Other goods                               16,566       15,797           769
                                                  

(1)  Detailed data are presented on a Census basis.  The information needed to
convert to a BOP basis is not available.

NOTE:  For information on data sources, nonsampling errors and definitions, see
the information section on page 26 of this release, or at
www.census.gov/foreign-trade or www.bea.gov/bea/rels.htm.
                                                  

SOURCE: Report FT900 (CB-04-92, BEA-04-27), Bureau of the Census, Foreign
Trade Division, April 2004.  For more information, contact Haydn R.
Mearkle (301-763-2246) or Nick Orsini (301-763-2311), Foreign
Trade Division.
