U.S. Census Bureau News

U.S. Department of Commerce  Washington, D.C. 20230


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
8:30 A.M. EDT TUESDAY, APRIL 12, 2011

For information contact:  						CB11-60		
Phone: (301) 763-3629,   	Email: ftd.profile.list@census.gov
Jeffrey McHugh, Ryan Coleman, Andreana Able or Joseph DeCampo


A Profile of U.S. Importing and Exporting Companies, 
2008 - 2009



The U.S. Census Bureau, Department of 
Commerce, releases the report, A Profile of U.S. 
Importing and Exporting Companies, 2008 - 2009.    
This is the first report to include information 
regarding U.S. importers.  It provides information 
on identified companies and their known export or 
import value.  Identified U.S. companies are 
defined as companies that can be linked to import 
or export transactions.  The known value is the 
value of export or import transactions linked to 
specific companies.  The decreases in known export 
and import values correspond with the overall 
decrease of trade in 2009; total export value 
decreased by 18.0 percent and total import value 
fell by 25.9 percent. The number of identified 
exporters fell by 4.8 percent in 2009 and the known 
export value decreased by 18.4 percent compared to 
2008.  The number of identified importers 
decreased by 5.3 percent in 2009 and the known 
import value decreased by 23.4 percent.

In 2009 the identified U.S. exporters accounted for 
$939 billion in exports or 88.9 percent of the total 
value of exported goods ($1,056 billion). In 2009 
the number of identified U.S. exporters was 275.8 
thousand, down from the revised 2008 estimate of 
289.7 thousand.  In 2008, the known value was 
revised to $1,151 billion.

In 2009 identified U.S. importers accounted for 

			2009 Value, % of 2009 Value, 2008 Value, % of 2008 Value
Total exports		1,056,043   100.0            1,287,442   100.0 
Low-value estimates 	23,911      2.3              29,982      2.3 
US & foreign governments 1,462      0.1              1,889       0.1 
Revisions 	       -889       <-0.1             -12,695     -1.0
Identified exporters* (known value)
                        938,794     88.9             1,150,903   89.4 
   Exported merchandise in
   both 2008 and 2009
                        909,061     86.1             1,118,967   86.9
   Exported merchandise in
   only 2008 or only 2009
			29,733      2.8 	     31,936	 2.5
Unidentified exports    92,766      8.8              117,361     9.1
Total Imports           1,559,625   100.0            2,103,641   100.0
Low-value estimates     16,963      1.1              22,788      1.1
Articles exported and returned, not 
advanced or improved in condition
			34,474      2.2              37,360      1.8
Revisions		1,749       0.1              3,499       0.2
Identified importers* (known value)
			1,350,406   86.6             1,763,879   83.8
   Imported merchandise in
   both 2008 and 2009
			1,309,416   84.0             1,714,082   81.5
   Imported merchandise in
   only 2008 or only 2009
			40,990      2.6              49,797      2.4
Unidentified imports /1
			156,033     10.0             276,114     13.1
*Number of Identified Companies

		2009	2008	Both Years	2009 Only	2008 Only
Exporters	275,843 289,711 185,526         90,317          104,185
Importers	179,831 189,935	129,551		50,280		60,384

* Note: Percentages may not add up to 100.0 percent due to rounding
/1 Includes Canadian electricity and natural gas imports


$1,350 billion in imports or 86.6 percent of the 
total value of imported goods ($1,560 billion).  The 
number of identified U.S. importers was 179.8 
thousand, down from 189.9 thousand in 2008.
Table 1: Distribution of Exports and Imports by Identified and Unidentified Companies
(Value in millions of dollars.  Details may not sum to total due to rounding.)


Because not all shipments can be linked to specific 
companies, the number of exporters and importers 
may be understated. The total export value that 
could not be linked to specific companies totaled 
11.1 percent in 2009 and 10.6 percent in 2008.  
This portion of the total export value includes 
exports by individuals, governments, low-value 
estimates, and information filed with missing, 
unknown, or incomplete company identifiers.  The 
total import value that could not be linked to 
specific companies totaled 13.4 percent in 2009 and 
16.2 percent in 2008.  This portion of the total 
import value includes imports by individuals, 
articles exported and returned (the condition was 
not advanced), low-value estimates, electricity and 
natural gas imports from Canada, and information 
filed with missing, unknown, or incomplete 
company identifiers.  Export and import values are 
taken from the detailed transactions used to compile 
the official U.S. trade statistics. Company size and 
type information are taken from administrative 
records and census or survey data on file with the 
Census Bureau.

The overall findings for 2009 and 2008 are shown 
in Table 1, which shows the proportion of exports 
and imports that were successfully matched to 
companies in the 2009 Business Register.  For 
exports, the 2008 figures in this report are revised 
from data released in the 2007-2008 exporter 
profile.  The revisions are based on the ability to 
match additional records.

Who Exports and Imports?

During 2009, 9.7 percent (26.8 thousand) of all 
identified exporters were multiple location 
companies; these companies accounted for 74.9 
percent of the known export value (Exhibit 1a).  In 
contrast, 249.1 thousand single location companies 
(making up 90.3 percent of the exporting 
companies) contributed 25.1 percent of the known 
export value.  

In 2009 10.2 percent of all identified importers 
were multiple location companies; these companies 
accounted for 74.9 percent of the known import 
value (Exhibit 1d).  Single location companies, 
making up 89.8 percent of the importing 
companies, contributed 25.1 percent of the known 
import value.  

Trade with related parties accounted for 35.9 
percent of the known export value by multiple 
location companies compared to 15.0 percent by 
single location companies (Exhibit 3a). 

Exhibit 1a shows that manufacturers accounted for 
the largest portion of the 2009 known value, 59.9 
percent, with 25.5 percent of the identified 
exporters.  Other companies and wholesalers 
accounted for 16.3 percent and 23.2 percent of the 
known export value, respectively; unclassified 
exporters accounted for the remainder.

For imports, manufacturers accounted for the 
largest portion of 2009 known value, 44.5 percent 
with 19.6 percent of the known importers.  Other 
companies and wholesalers accounted for 21.6 
percent and 33.4 percent of the known import value 
(Exhibit 1d), respectively; unclassified companies 
accounted for the remainder of the known value.  
The other companies category includes 
manufacturers of prepackaged software and books; 
brokers or freight forwarders and other 
transportation and warehousing firms, which often 
act as agents for the true exporter; business, 
engineering, and management services; oil and gas 
extraction companies; coal mining companies; and 
communication services companies. 

The number of multiple location exporting 
companies fell by 5.4 percent in 2009.  All 
company types decreased; manufacturers decreased 
by 4.1 percent, wholesalers by 1.8 percent, other 
companies by 7.1 percent, and unclassified 
companies by just 13.7 percent (Exhibit 1c).

 
The number of multiple location importing 
companies decreased by 4.5 percent in 2009.  
Manufacturers fell by 6.2 percent, wholesalers by 
3.2 percent, other companies by 6.9 percent, and 
unclassified companies by 19.0 percent (Exhibit 
1f).

The 2009 Export and Import Concentration by Top 
Companies bar chart shows the concentration by 
percent of known export and import values.  Of the 
known export value for 2009, 59.0 percent was 
accounted for by the top 500 companies.  Just less 
than half of the total known export value was 
accounted for by the top 250 exporters.  
For imports, 67.7 percent of the known value was 
accounted for by the top 500 companies and 59.7 
percent of the total was accounted for by the top 
250 importers.

For exports, the top 100 manufacturers contributed 
nearly one-third of the total known export value 
and over one-half of all exports by manufacturers
 (Exhibit 2a). For imports, the top 100 
manufacturers contributed 30.7 percent of the total 
known import value and over two-thirds of all 
imports by manufacturers (Exhibit 2c).

Among the company types, the top 50 
manufacturers accounted for 42.2 percent of the 
known export value of the manufacturing sector. 
The top 50 companies represented 34.7 percent of 
the known export value for wholesalers and nearly 
36.7 percent of the known value for other 
companies (Exhibit 2a).

For imports, the top 50 importing manufacturers 
accounted for 59.0 percent of the known value of 
this sector. The top 50 companies represented 36.8 
percent of the known import value for wholesalers 
and about 62.7 percent of the known value for 
other companies (Exhibit 2c). 



 



The 2009 Number of Companies that Export or 
Import Venn diagram shows the number of 
identified companies with both exports and 
imports.  During 2009, 78,940 companies both 
exported and imported goods, 196,903 companies 
only exported goods, and 100,891 companies only 
imported goods. The companies that both exported 
and imported in 2009 accounted for 85.6 percent of 
the known export value and 92.7 percent of the 
known import value.  Among companies that both 
imported and exported goods, 30.7 percent were 
manufacturers, 48.1 percent were wholesalers, and 
20.8 percent were other (Exhibits 1a, 1d, and 
1g).   

Large-Sized Companies 

Large identified companies (those employing 500 
or more workers) were responsible for 67.2 percent 
of the known export value and 68.1 percent of 
known import value. They represented only 2.4 
percent of all identified exporters and 2.9 percent 
of all known importers (Exhibits 1a and 1d).  

Large companies dominated manufacturers 
exports, with 3.6 percent of manufacturing 
exporters (2,557 of 70,331) accounting for 82.8 
percent of manufacturing export value ($466 
billion of $562 billion). Similarly, large 
wholesalers, who comprise 0.8 percent of the 
wholesalers who export, accounted for 38.9 percent 
of the value of known exports by wholesalers.  
Large companies in the other category 
represented 3.1 percent of the identified exporters 
in the other category, and 52.2 percent of the 
known value.  Large manufacturers export value to 
related parties represented 38.5 percent of the 
manufacturers total (Exhibit 3a).

Large companies comprised 6.4 percent of 
manufacturing importers (2,264 of 35,243) 
accounting for 87.1 percent of manufacturing 
import value ($524 billion of $601 billion). Large 
wholesalers, who comprise approximately 0.8 
percent of the wholesalers who import, accounted 
for 43.2 percent of the value of known imports by 
wholesalers.  Large companies represented 3.7 
percent of identified importers in the other 
category (Exhibit 1d).  

Large companies accounted for 5.7 percent of those 
that both exported and imported goods in 2009.  
These large companies represented 77.1 percent of 
the known export value and 73.0 percent of the 
known import value.  (Exhibit 1g). 


Small- and Medium-Sized Companies

Small- and medium-sized companies (those 
employing fewer than 500 workers, including 
number of employees unknown) comprised 97.6 
percent of all identified exporters and 97.1 percent 
of all identified importers.  They account for 32.8 
percent and 31.9 percent of the known export and 
import value, respectively.  The following findings 
were extracted from Exhibits 1a, 1d and 1g:

*	96.4 percent of manufacturing exporters were 
small- or medium-sized companies; however 
they contributed just 17.2 percent of the 
sector's $562 billion in exports.  93.6 percent 
of manufacturing importers were small- or 
medium-sized; they accounted for 12.9 percent 
of the sectors $602 billion in imports.

*	99.2 percent of exporting wholesalers were 
small- or medium-sized companies; they 
accounted for 61.1 percent of the sectors $218 
billion in exports. 99.2 percent of wholesaler 
importers were small- or medium-sized; they 
contributed 56.8 percent of the sectors $451 
billion in imports.
	
*	96.9 percent of other companies with exports 
were small- or medium-sized companies.  96.3 
percent of importing other companies were 
small- or medium-sized.

*	Among companies that both exported and 
imported in 2009, small- or medium-sized 
companies accounted for 94.3 percent of such 
companies, accounting for 22.9 percent of the 
known export value and 27.0 percent of the 
known import value.

	Export and Import Markets
	
	The country groups used in the 2009 Profile have 
been revised from those used in earlier Profiles 
(Exhibits 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d, 5e, 5f, 5g, and 5h).  
Countries were added to the Euro Area and Asia 
Near East, and removed from the Organization of 
Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Please 
refer to World Area Country Groupings for Exhibit 
5.
	
	Most identified companies exported to (58.0 
percent) or imported from (60.8 percent) only one 
foreign country.  A small percentage of exporters, 
0.4 percent, shipped to 50 or more countries; these 
companies accounted for 48.3 percent of the known 
export value (Exhibit 4a).  Less than 0.1 percent of 
importing companies imported from 50 or more 
countries, accounting for 18.9 percent of the known 
import value (Exhibit 4c).
	 
	In 2009 82.6 percent of all exporting companies 
exported to at least one of the top 25 U.S. trading 
partners.  The largest number of identified 
companies exported to Canada, followed by 
Mexico, the United Kingdom, Germany, and China 
(Exhibit 5a).  89.5 percent of all importing 
companies imported from at least one of the top 25 
trading partners.  The largest number of identified 
companies imported from China, followed by 
Taiwan, Germany, Italy, and India (Exhibit 5d).
	
	U.S. companies that both exported to and imported 
from Canada represented 69.0 percent of known 
export value to Canada in 2009 ($107 billion of 
$155 billion).  Companies exporting to and 
importing from China represented 67.1 percent of 
known import value from China ($187 billion of 
$278 billion).  The top 5 countries for identified 
U.S. companies that had both exports and imports 
in 2009 were China, Germany, the United 
Kingdom, Canada, and Mexico (Exhibits 5a, 5d, 
and 5g).
	
	Exports and Imports by State
	
	The Census Bureau releases data on exports by state 
based on the origin of movement (OM).  The OM 
data series is based on where the goods began their 
journey to the port of export as reported with the 
electronic export information. Similarly, import 
statistics by state are based on the state of 
destination (SD).  This is the reported state, U.S. 
territory or U.S. possession where the merchandise 
is destined.  Exhibit 6 shows the number of 
companies exporting from and importing to each 
state during 2008 and 2009 based upon these 
definitions.  (Note that the same company can be 
shown as exporting to or importing from multiple 
states.) 
	
*	In 2009, the top five states, based on the 
number of identified exporting companies, 
were California, Florida, New York, Texas, 
and Illinois. Exporters in these five states 
represented 41.5 percent of the total known 
export value.  For importing companies, the 
top five states were California, New York, 
Florida, Texas, and New Jersey.  Importers in 
these states accounted for 47.6 percent of the 
total known import value.
	
*	States/territories recording the largest decreases 
in known export value in 2009 were New 
Mexico (56.2 percent), South Dakota (40.9 
percent), District of Columbia (33.9 percent), 
Kansas (33.0 percent), and Arizona (29.2 
percent). Wyoming (46.8 percent), New 
Hampshire (42.9 percent), Montana (40.8 
percent), District of Columbia (39.4 percent), 
and North Dakota (38.5 percent) had the 
largest decreases in known import value.
	
	Comparison of 2008 and 2009 Results
	
	The relative proportions of exports and imports 
accounted for by manufacturers, wholesalers, and 
other companies based upon both number of 
companies and known value remained consistent 
from 2008 to 2009.  Below are a number of 
noteworthy year-to-year changes (Exhibits 1c, 1f, 
5c, and 5f):

*	The known export value decreased by 18.4 
percent. The number of identified exporting 
companies decreased by 13,868 or just less than 
4.8 percent.  The single location companies 
decreased by 12,347 and the multiple location 
companies decreased by 1,521.

*	The known import value fell by 23.4 percent.  
The number of identified importing companies 
decreased by 10,104 or 5.3 percent.  The single 
location companies decreased by 9,229 and the 
multiple location companies decreased by 875.
	
*	The number of small- and medium-sized 
exporting companies decreased by 4.7 percent 
from 282.6 thousand in 2008 to 269.3 thousand 
in 2009, while the number of large companies 
decreased by 7.5 percent from 7,108 to 6,574.
*	The number of small- and medium-sized 
importing companies decreased by 5.2 percent 
from 184.3 thousand in 2008 to 174.6 thousand 
in 2009, while the number of large companies 
decreased by 8.0 percent from 5,674 to 5,219.

*	The number of exporting wholesalers fell by 
nearly 1.8 percent from 95.3 thousand in 2008 
to 93.6 thousand in 2009.  Additionally, the 
number of exporting manufacturers decreased 
by 4.1 percent from 73.3 thousand in 2008 to 
70.3 thousand in 2009.

*	The number of importing wholesalers fell by 
3.2 percent from 84.8 thousand in 2008 to 82.0 
thousand in 2009.  Additionally, the number of 
importing manufacturers decreased by 6.2 
percent from 37.6 thousand in 2008 to 35.2 
thousand in 2009.

*	Among the top 25 U.S. export trading partners, 
Belgium (11.2 percent), Germany (9.4 
percent), Italy (9.4 percent), and Canada (8.7 
percent) showed the largest percentage 
decreases in the number of identified exporting 
companies.  Only 3 of the top 25 U.S. export 
trading partners saw an increase in the number 
of identified exporting companies between 
2008 and 2009:  Saudi Arabia (4.4 percent), 
Columbia (1.2 percent) and Chile (1.2 
percent).

*	Among the top 25 U.S. import trading 
partners, Venezuela (19.3 percent), Singapore 
(13.2 percent), Brazil (12.1 percent), the 
Netherlands (9.7 percent), and France (9.7 
percent) showed the largest percentage 
decreases in the number of identified importing 
companies.

Some portion of these changes may reflect changes 
in the match rate rather than an actual change in the 
number of companies.  During the process of 
identifying individual companies, it was not 
possible to investigate every unmatched case.  
Priority was given to identifying unmatched 
companies having high values of trade.  As a result, 
the information on small importers and exporters is 
most likely understated.  Also, users should not 
assume that the unidentified companies reflected 
the same distribution of company types and sizes as 
the identified (known) exporters and importers.  
Comparisons between the number of companies 
importing and exporting in given categories or 
different years might be somewhat misleading due 
to differences in the percent of value we were able 
to match to specific companies.  

	Copies of the importer and exporter profiles are 
available by calling (301)763-2227 or at 
http://www.census.gov/foreign-
trade/aip/index.html#profile.


	TABLE OF CONTENTS
	
	
	Exhibit 1a.	2009 Exports by Company Type and Employment Size	9
	
	Exhibit 1b.	2008 Exports by Company Type and Employment Size	11
	
	Exhibit 1c.	Percent Difference Between the 2008 and 2009 Export Results	13
	
	Exhibit 1d.	2009 Imports by Company Type and Employment Size	15
	
	Exhibit 1e.	2008 Imports by Company Type and Employment Size	17
	
	Exhibit 1f.	Percent Difference Between the 2008 and 2009 Import Results	19
	
	Exhibit 1g.	2009 Exports and Imports by Company Type and Employment Size for 
		Companies that both Export and Import	21
	
	Exhibit 1h.	2008 Exports and Imports by Company Type and Employment Size for 
		Companies that both Export and Import	23
	
	Exhibit 2a.	Top Companies Share of the 2009 Export Market by Company Type	25
	
	Exhibit 2b.	Top Companies Share of the 2008 Export Market by Company Type	26
	
	Exhibit 2c.	Top Companies Share of the 2009 Import Market by Company Type	27
	
	Exhibit 2d.	Top Companies Share of the 2008 Import Market by Company Type	28
	
	Exhibit 3a.	2009 Exports to Related Parties by Company Type and Employment Size	29
	
	Exhibit 3b.	2008 Exports to Related Parties by Company Type and Employment Size	31
	
	Exhibit 4a.	2009 Exports by Company Type and Employment Size to Number of Partner Countries	33
	
	Exhibit 4b.	2008 Exports by Company Type and Employment Size to Number of Partner Countries	34
	
	Exhibit 4c.	2009 Imports by Company Type and Employment Size from Number of Partner Countries	35
	
	Exhibit 4d.	2008 Imports by Company Type and Employment Size from Number of Partner Countries	36
	
	Exhibit 5a.	2009 Exports by Company Employment Size to World Areas and Selected Countries	37
	
	Exhibit 5b.	2008 Exports by Company Employment Size to World Areas and Selected Countries	39
	
	Exhibit 5c.	Percent Difference Between 2008 and 2009 Exports to World Areas and Selected 
		Countries 	41
	
	Exhibit 5d.	2009 Imports by Company Employment Size from World Areas and Selected Countries	42
	
	Exhibit 5e.	2008 Imports by Company Employment Size from World Areas and Selected Countries	44
	
	Exhibit 5f.	Percent Difference Between 2008 and 2009 Imports from World Areas and Selected 
		Countries 	46
	
	Exhibit 5g.	2009 Exports and Imports for Selected Countries and World Areas by Employment Size,
		Only for Companies that both Imported from and Exported to Listed Countries and
		World Areas 	47
	
	Exhibit 5h.	2008 Exports and Imports for Selected Countries and World Areas by Employment Size,
		Only for Companies that both Imported from and Exported to Listed Countries and
		World Areas	49
	
	Exhibit 6a.	2009 Exports by State of the Origin of Movement, Number of Exporting Companies, 
		Value, and Percent Difference Between the 2008 and 2009 Results	51
	
	Exhibit 6b.	2008 Exports by State of the Origin of Movement, Number of Exporting Companies, 
		and Value	52
	
	Exhibit 6c.	2009 Imports by State of Destination, Number of Importing Companies, Value,
		and Percent Difference Between the 2008 and 2009 Results	53
	
	Exhibit 6d.	2008 Imports by State of Destination, Number of Importing Companies, and Value 	54
	
	
	
	Technical Documentation
	
	This section contains critical information on sources and reliability of data, as well as definitions of terms and 
methodological procedures that users should consider before attempting to interpret or analyze the statistical 
data presented in this report.  Failure to do so may affect the result.  
	
	
	


NOTE: All percentages given for company size are based on known value.
6

8

