INFORMATION ON GOODS AND SERVICES

 


GOODS
CENSUS BASIS
The Census basis goods data are compiled from the documents 
collected by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and 
reflect the movement of goods between foreign countries and 
the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. 
Virgin Islands, and U.S. Foreign Trade Zones.  They include 
government and non-government shipments of goods, and 
exclude shipments between the United States and its territories 
and possessions, transactions with U.S. military, diplomatic 
and consular installations abroad, U.S. goods returned to the 
United States by its Armed Forces, personal and household 
effects of travelers, and in-transit shipments.  The General 
Imports value reflects the total arrival of merchandise from 
foreign countries that immediately enters consumption 
channels, warehouses, or Foreign Trade Zones.
For imports, the value reported is the U.S. Customs and 
Border Protection appraised value of merchandise; generally, 
the price paid for merchandise for export to the United States.  
Import duties, freight, insurance, and other charges incurred in 
bringing merchandise to the United States are excluded.
Exports are valued at the f.a.s.- free alongside ship value of 
merchandise at the U.S. port of export, based on the 
transaction price including inland freight, insurance, and other 
charges incurred in placing the merchandise alongside the 
carrier at the U.S. port of exportation.
Monthly data include actual month's transactions as well as a 
small number of transactions for previous months.  Each 
month we revise the aggregate seasonally adjusted (current 
and chain-weighted dollar) and unadjusted export, import and 
trade balance figures, as well as the end-use totals for the prior 
month.  SITC and country detail data are not revised monthly.  
The timing adjustment shown in Exhibit 14 is the difference 
between monthly data as originally reported and as 
recompiled. Quarterly revisions are made to the chain-
weighted dollar series. In the last month of each quarter, the 
current and previous quarter are revised to incorporate the 
Bureau of Labor Statistics' monthly revisions and align 
Census and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis' quarterly 
data. Annual revisions for the months are made in June to 
reflect corrections received subsequent to the monthly 
revisions. These revisions are reflected in totals, end-use, 
SITC, and country summary data. The monthly end-use, 
commodity, and country area data presented in this release are 
on a Census basis.  This refers to Exhibits 6 - 18.


U.S./CANADA DATA EXCHANGE AND 
SUBSTITUTION
The data for U.S. exports to Canada are derived from import 
data compiled by Canada.  The use of Canada's import data to 
produce U.S. export data requires several alignments in order 
to compare the two series.
1.	Coverage -- Canadian imports are based on country of 
origin.  U.S. goods shipped from a third country are 
included.  U.S. exports exclude these foreign shipments. 
For August 2008, these shipments totaled $136.2 million.  
U.S. export coverage also excludes certain Canadian 
postal shipments.  For August 2008, these shipments 
totaled $21.3 million.
U.S. import coverage includes shipments of railcars and 
locomotives from Canada.  Effective with January 2004 
statistics, Canada excludes these shipments from its goods 
exports to the United States, therefore creating coverage 
differences between the two countries for these goods.
2.	Valuation -- Canadian imports are valued at the point of 
origin in the United States.  However, U.S. exports are 
valued at the port of exit in the United States and include 
inland freight charges, making the U.S. export value 
slightly larger.  Canada requires inland freight to be 
reported. Inland freight charges for August 2008 
accounted for 2.3 percent of the value of U.S. exports to 
Canada.
3.	Reexports -- U.S. exports include reexports of foreign 
goods.  Again, the aggregate U.S. export figure is slightly 
larger.  For August 2008, reexports to Canada were  
$3,208.6 million.
4.	Exchange Rate -- Average monthly exchange rates are 
applied to convert the published data to U.S. currency. 
For August 2008, the average exchange rate was 1.0535 
Canadian dollars per U.S. dollar.
5.	Other -- There are other minor differences, which are 
statistically insignificant, such as rounding error.



Canadian Estimates
Effective with January 2001 statistics, the current month data 
for exports to Canada contain an estimate for late arrivals and 
corrections.  The following month, this estimate is replaced, in 
the press release tables only, with the actual value of late 
receipts and corrections.  This estimate improves the current 
month data for exports to Canada and treats late receipts for 
exports to Canada in a manner more consistent with the 
treatment of late receipts for exports to other countries.
Nonsampling errors
The goods data are a complete enumeration of documents 
collected by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and are 
not subject to sampling errors; but they are subject to several 
types of nonsampling errors.  Quality assurance procedures are 
performed at every stage of collection, processing and 
tabulation; however the data are still subject to several types 
of nonsampling errors.  The most significant of these include 
reporting errors, undocumented shipments, timeliness, data 
capture errors, and errors in the estimation of low-valued 
transactions.
Reporting Errors: Reporting errors are mistakes or omissions 
made by importers, exporters or their agents in their import or 
export declarations.  Most errors involve missing or invalid 
commodity classification codes and missing or incorrect 
quantities or shipping weights.  They have a negligible effect 
on import, export and balance of trade statistics.  However, 
they can affect the detailed commodity statistics.
Undocumented Shipments: Federal regulations require 
importers, exporters or their agents to report all merchandise 
shipments above established exemption levels.  The U.S. 
Census Bureau has determined that not all required documents 
are filed, particularly for exports.
Timeliness and Data Capture Errors: The U.S. Census 
Bureau captures import and export information from 
administrative documents and through various automated 
collection programs.  Documents may be lost, and data may be 
incorrectly keyed, coded or recorded.  Transactions may be 
included in a subsequent month's statistics if received late.
Low-valued Transactions: The total values of transactions 
valued as much as or below $2,500 for exports and $2,000 
($250 for certain quota items) for imports are estimated for 
each country, using factors based on the ratios of low-valued 
shipments to individual country totals for past periods.
The U.S. Census Bureau recommends that data users 
incorporate this information into their analyses, as 
nonsampling errors could impact the conclusion drawn from 
the results.  For a detailed discussion of errors affecting the 
goods data, see "U.S. Merchandise Trade Statistics: A Quality 
Profile" available on the internet at www.census.gov/foreign-
trade/aip/index.html#infopapers or from the Foreign Trade 
Division, U.S. Census Bureau.


AREA GROUPINGS (See Exhibits 14 and 14A)
North America - Canada, Mexico
Europe - Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbijan, 
Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, 
Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Faroe Islands, 
Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, 
Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, 
Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, 
Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, 
Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San 
Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Svalbard-Jan 
Mayen Island, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Turkey, 
Turkmenistan, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan, Vatican 
City.
European Union - Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech 
Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, 
Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, 
Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, 
Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom.
Euro Area - Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Finland, France, 
Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, 
Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain.
Pacific Rim - Australia, Brunei, China, Hong Kong, 
Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Macao, Malaysia, New Zealand, 
Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan.
South/Central America - Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, 
Argentina, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, 
Bolivia, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Chile, 
Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, 
Ecuador, El Salvador, Falkland Islands, French Guiana, 
Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, 
Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, 
Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. 
Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad 
and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Uruguay, Venezuela.
OPEC - Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, 
Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab 
Emirates, Venezuela.
Africa - Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, British Indian 
Ocean Territories, Burkina, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, 
Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo 
(Brazzaville), Congo (Kinshasa), Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial 
Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, French Southern and Antarctic 
Lands, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory 
Coast, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, 
Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mayotte, Morocco, Mozambique, 
Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Reunion, Rwanda, St. Helena, Sao 
Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, 
Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, 
Tunisia, Uganda, Western Sahara, Zambia, Zimbabwe.


Adjustments for Seasonal and Working-Day Variations
Goods are initially classified under the Harmonized System 
(HS) which describes and measures the characteristics of 
goods traded.  Combining trade into approximately 140 export 
and 140 import end-use categories makes it possible to 
examine goods according to their principal uses (See Exhibits 
7 and 8).  These categories are used as the basis for computing 
the seasonal and working-day adjusted data.  These adjusted 
data are then summed to the six end-use aggregates for 
publication (Exhibit 6).  These data are provided to the U.S. 
Bureau of Economic Analysis, from the U.S. Census Bureau, 
for use in the Balance of Payments and the National Income 
and Product Accounts.
The seasonal adjustment procedure is based on a model that 
estimates the monthly movements as percentages above or 
below the general level of each end-use commodity series 
(unlike other methods that redistribute the actual series values 
over the calendar year).  Because of the extremely variable 
movements of the data series for aircraft, users studying data 
trends may wish to analyze aircraft separately from other 
trade.
Adjustments for Price Change
Data adjusted for seasonal variation on a chained-dollar basis 
(2000 base year) are presented in Exhibits 10 and 11.  This 
adjustment for price change is done using the Fisher chain-
weighted methodology.  The deflators are primarily based 
upon the monthly price indexes published by the Bureau of 
Labor Statistics using techniques developed for the National 
Income and Product Accounts by the U.S. Bureau of 
Economic Analysis.
SITC Data
Goods data appearing in Exhibit 15 are classified in terms of 
the Standard International Trade Classification (SITC) 
Revision 3.  Agricultural goods consist of non-marine food 
products and other products of agriculture which have not 
passed through complex processes of manufacture, such as 
raw hides and skins, fats and oils, and wine. A few goods such 
as essential oils, starches, casein, and albumin, considered to 
be agricultural by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, have 
been excluded from agricultural goods and are included in 
manufactured goods where they are classified in the SITC.
Manufactured goods conform to the SITC sections that 
include chemicals and related products; manufactured goods 
classified chiefly by material; machinery and transport 
equipment; miscellaneous manufactured articles; and goods 
and transactions not classified elsewhere.
Reexports are foreign merchandise entering the country as 
imports, and at the time of exportation are in substantially the 
same condition as when imported.  Reexports, included in 
overall export totals, appear as separate line items in Exhibit 
15.


Advanced Technology Products (ATP)
About 500 of some 22,000 commodity classification codes 
used in reporting U.S. merchandise trade are identified as 
"advanced technology" codes and they meet the following 
criteria:
1.	The code contains products whose technology is from a 
recognized high technology field (e.g., biotechnology).
2.	These products represent leading edge technology in that 
field.
3.	Such products constitute a significant part of all items 
covered in the selected classification code.
The aggregation of the goods results in a measure of advanced 
technology trade which appears in Exhibits 16 and 16A.  This 
product and commodity-based measure of advanced 
technology differs from broader NAICS industry-based 
measures which include all goods produced by a particular 
industry group, regardless of the level of technology embodied 
in the goods.
BALANCE OF PAYMENTS (BOP) BASIS
Goods on a Census basis are adjusted by the U.S. Bureau of 
Economic Analysis to goods on a BOP basis to bring the data 
in line with the concepts and definitions used to prepare the 
international and national accounts.  Broadly, the adjustments 
include changes in ownership that occur without goods 
passing into or out of the customs territory of the United 
States.  These adjustments are necessary to supplement 
coverage of the Census basis data, to eliminate duplication of 
transactions recorded elsewhere in the international accounts, 
and to value transactions according to a standard definition.
The export adjustments include:
U.S. military sales contracts - This deduction of U.S. 
military sales contracts is made because the U.S. Census 
Bureau has included these contracts in the goods data, but 
BEA includes them in the service category "Transfers Under 
U.S. Military Sales Contracts."  BEA's source material for 
these contracts is more comprehensive, but has no 
distinction between goods and services.
Private gift parcels - This addition is made for parcels 
mailed to foreigners by individuals through the U.S. Postal 
Service.  (Only commercial shipments are covered in 
Census goods exports.)
Gold exports, nonmonetary - This addition is made for 
gold that is purchased by foreign official agencies from 
private dealers in the United States and held at the Federal 
Reserve Bank of New York.  The Census data only include 
gold that leaves the customs territory.


Some smaller adjustments are also made to exports:
Deductions for repairs of goods, developed motion picture 
film, and military grant-aid.  Additions for sales of fish in 
U.S. territorial waters, exports of electricity to Mexico, and 
vessels and oil rigs that change ownership for which no 
export document is filed.

The import adjustments include:
Inland freight in Canada - An addition is made for inland 
freight in Canada.  Imports of goods from all countries are 
valued at the foreign port of export, including inland freight 
charges ("customs value").  In the case of Canada, this 
should be the cost of the goods at the U.S. border.  
However, the customs value for imports for certain 
Canadian goods is the point of origin in Canada.  The BEA 
makes an addition for the inland freight charges of 
transporting these Canadian goods to the U.S. border to 
make the value comparable to the customs value as reported 
by all other countries.  Insurance and freight charges for 
transporting goods to the United States from all other 
countries to the U.S. border are included in services by the 
BEA.  (The same procedure is used for Mexico as an Other 
Adjustment, but is much smaller.)
Gold imports, nonmonetary - This addition is made for 
gold sold by foreign official agencies to private purchasers 
out of stock held at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.  
The Census data only include gold that enters the customs 
territory.
Imports by U.S. military agencies - This deduction of U.S. 
military sales contracts is made because the U.S. Census 
Bureau has included these contracts in the goods data, but 
BEA includes them in the service category "Direct Defense 
Expenditures."  BEA's source material is more 
comprehensive, but has no distinction between goods and 
services.
Some smaller adjustments are also made to imports:
Deductions for repairs of goods and developed motion 
picture film.  Additions for imported electricity from 
Mexico, conversion of vessels for commercial use, repairs 
to U.S. vessels abroad, and valuation of prepackaged 
software imports at market value.

SERVICES
The statistics are estimates of services transactions between 
foreign countries and the 50 states, the District of Columbia, 
Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and other U.S. territories 
and possessions.  Transactions with U.S. military, diplomatic, 
and consular installations abroad are excluded because they 
are considered to be part of the U.S. economy.
Services are shown in seven broad categories.  Types of 
services for imports and exports are the same for six of the 
seven categories.  For the seventh, exports is "Transfers Under 
U.S. Military Sales Contracts" while for imports the category


is "Direct Defense Expenditures."  The following is a brief 
description of the types of services included in each category:
Travel - Purchases of services and goods by U.S. 
travelers abroad and by foreign visitors to the United 
States.  A traveler is defined as a person who stays for a 
period of less than 1 year in a country of which the person 
is not a resident.  Includes expenditures for food, lodging, 
recreation, gifts, and other items incidental to a foreign 
visit.
Passenger Fares - Fares paid by residents of one country 
to residents of other countries.  Receipts consist of fares 
received by U.S. carriers from foreign residents for travel 
between the United States and foreign countries and 
between two foreign points.  Payments consist of fares 
paid by U.S. residents to foreign carriers for travel 
between the United States and foreign countries.
Other Transportation - Charges for the transportation of 
goods by ocean, air, waterway, pipeline, and rail carriers 
to and from the United States.  Includes freight charges, 
operating expenses that transportation companies incur in 
foreign ports, and payments for vessel charter and aircraft 
rentals with crew.
Royalties and License Fees - Transactions with affiliated 
and unaffiliated foreign residents.  (The term "affiliated" 
refers to a direct investment relationship, which exists 
when a U.S. person has ownership or control, directly or 
indirectly, of 10 percent or more of a foreign business 
enterprise's voting securities or the equivalent, or when a 
foreign person has a similar interest in a U.S. enterprise.)  
Transactions involve intangible assets and proprietary 
rights such as the use of patents, techniques, processes, 
formulas, designs, know-how, trademarks, copyrights, 
franchises, and manufacturing rights.  The term 
"royalties" generally refers to payments for the utilization 
of copyrights or trademarks, and the term "license fees" 
generally refers to payments for the use of patents or 
industrial processes.
Other Private Services - Transactions with affiliated and 
unaffiliated foreign residents.  (The term "affiliated" 
refers to a direct investment relationship, which exists 
when a U.S. person has ownership or control, directly or 
indirectly, of 10 percent or more of a foreign business 
enterprise's voting securities or the equivalent, or when a 
foreign person has a similar interest in a U.S. enterprise.)  
Transactions consist of education services; financial 
services (includes commissions and other transactions 
fees associated with the purchase and sale of securities 
and noninterest income of banks, and excludes investment 
income); insurance services; telecommunications services 
(includes transmission services and value-added services); 
and business, professional, and technical services. 
Included in the last group are advertising services; 
computer and data processing services; database and other 
information services; research, development, and testing 
services; 
management, consulting, and public relations services; 
legal services; construction, engineering, architectural, 
and mining services; industrial engineering services; 
installation, maintenance, and repair of equipment; and 
other services, including medical services and film and 
tape rentals.
Transfers Under U.S. Military Sales Contracts 
(Exports only) - Exports of goods and services in which 
U.S. Government military agencies participate.  Includes 
both goods, such as equipment, and services, such as 
repair services and training, that cannot be separately 
identified.
Direct Defense Expenditures (Imports only) - 
Expenditures incurred by U.S. military agencies abroad, 
including expenditures by U.S. personnel, payments of 
wages to foreign residents, construction expenditures, 
payments for foreign contractual services, and 
procurement of foreign goods.  Includes both goods and 
services that cannot be separately identified.
U.S. Government Miscellaneous Services - Transactions 
of U.S. Government nonmilitary agencies with foreign 
residents.  Most of these transactions involve the 
provision of services to, or purchases of services from, 
foreigners; transfers of some goods are also included.
Services estimates are based on quarterly, annual, and 
benchmark surveys and partial information generated from 
monthly reports.  Service transactions are estimated at market 
prices.  Estimates are seasonally adjusted when statistically 
significant seasonal patterns are present.  No country or area 
detail is available due to the lack of adequate source data upon 
which to base estimates.
The revision policy is as follows:  Each month, a preliminary 
estimate for the current month and a revised estimate for the 
immediately preceding month are released.  After a revised 
month is released, no further changes are made to that month 
until more complete source data become available in March, 
June, September, and December. The releases in March, June, 
September, and December contain revised data for the 
previous six months. The release in March also contains 
revisions for all months of the previous year in order to align 
the seasonally adjusted monthly data with annual totals.  The 
release in June contains annual revisions, which reflect 
updated source data and changes in estimating methodologies.




MONTHLY RELEASE 
SCHEDULE

Mon
th
Date
Day



Jan
03-11-08
Tuesday
Feb
04-10-08
Thursday
Mar
05-09-08
Friday
Apr
06-10-08
Tuesday
May
07-11-08
Friday
Jun
08-12-08
Tuesday
Jul
09-11-08
Thursday
Aug
10-10-08
Friday
Sep
11-13-08
Thursday
Oct
12-11-08
Thursday




Nov
01-13-09
Tuesday
Dec
02-11-09
Wednesday


Quarterly and annual estimates of services are included as part 
of the U.S. international transactions accounts, published in 
the January, April, August, and October issues of the Survey 
of Current Business.  The next release of the U.S. international 
transactions accounts is scheduled       for December 17, 2008.  
The Survey is available from the Superintendent of 
Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, 
D.C. 20402, or online at 
www.bea.gov/scb/index.htm.

ELECTRONIC AVAILABILITY

The FT-900 and supplement are available on the following:

INTERNET The U.S. International Trade in Goods and 
Services reports are available at:  www.census.gov/ft900 or 
www.bea.gov/newsreleases/international/trade/tradnewsrelease.htm.

STAT-USA The U.S. Department of Commerce's electronic 
information facility. Call 1 800 STAT-USA for product 
information.

Additional data and information on goods are obtainable from: 
Foreign Trade Division, U.S. Census Bureau, Washington, 
D.C.  20233

Additional data and information on services are obtainable 
from: Balance of Payments Division, U.S. Bureau of 
Economic Analysis, Washington, D.C.  20230
 
 
 
 
28


		A-1
A-2
A-5
