U.S. Census Bureau News U.S. Department of Commerce • Washington, D.C. 20230 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 8:30 A.M. EDT Thursday, April 3, 2014 For information contact: CB14-53 Phone: (301) 763-3629, Email: ftd.profile.list@census.gov Joe Kafchinski, Ryan Coleman, Sherri Ewing or Joseph DeCampo A Profile of U.S. Importing and Exporting Companies, 2011 - 2012 The U.S. Census Bureau, Department of Commerce, releases the report, A Profile of U.S. Importing and Exporting Companies, 2011 - 2012. 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 increases in known export and import values correspond with the overall increase of trade in 2012; total export value increased by 4.4 percent and total import value increased by 3.1 percent. The number of identified exporters increased by 0.4 percent in 2012 and the known export value increased by 4.1 percent compared to 2011. The number of identified importers increased by 1.0 percent in 2012 and the known import value increased by 3.2 percent. In 2012 the identified U.S. exporters accounted for $1,380 billion in exports or 89.3 percent of the total value of exported goods ($1,546 billion). In 2012 the number of identified U.S. exporters was 304.9 thousand, up from 303.5 thousand in 2011 (revised). In 2011, the known value was revised to $1,325 billion. In 2012 identified U.S. importers accounted for $2,008 billion in imports or 88.2 percent of the total value of imported goods ($2,275 billion). The number of identified U.S. importers was 185.7 thousand, up from 184.0 thousand in 2011 (revised). Because not all shipments can be linked to specific companies, the number of exporters and importers may be understated (Table 1). The total export value that could not be linked to specific companies totaled 10.7 percent in 2012 and 10.5 percent in 2011. 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 11.8 percent in 2012 and 11.9 percent in 2011. 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 2012 and 2011 are shown in Table 1, which shows the proportion of exports and imports that were successfully matched to companies in the 2011 and 2012 Business Registers. The 2011 exporter figures in this report are revised from data released in the 2010-2011 exporter profile. The revisions are based on the ability to match additional export records by company name. Unlike exports, all import records have unique numeric importer identifiers, so additional matching by the company name is not performed. Therefore no revisions are made to imports. Please refer to the Methodology section of the Technical Documentation at the end of this report. Who Exports and Imports? During 2012, 9.4 percent (28.7 thousand) of all identified exporters were multiple location companies; these companies accounted for 75.7 percent of the known export value (Exhibit 1a). In contrast, 276.2 thousand single location companies (making up 90.6 percent of the exporting companies) contributed 24.3 percent of the known export value. In 2012, 10.7 percent of all identified importers were multiple location companies; these companies accounted for 77.5 percent of the known import value (Exhibit 1d). Single location companies, making up 89.3 percent of the importing companies, contributed 22.5 percent of the known import value. Trade with related parties accounted for 35.1 percent of the known export value by multiple location companies compared to 16.5 percent by single location companies (Exhibit 3a). Exhibit 1a shows that manufacturers accounted for the largest portion of the 2012 known value, 60.6 percent, with 24.4 percent of the identified exporters. Wholesalers accounted for 22.3 percent and other companies accounted for 17.1 percent of the known export value. For imports, manufacturers accounted for the largest portion of 2012 known value, 47.6 percent with 19.8 percent of the known importers. Wholesalers accounted for 29.4 percent and other companies accounted for 23.0 percent of the known import value (Exhibit 1d). 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; communication services companies; and companies for which an industry could not be determined. The number of multiple location exporting companies increased by 7.4 percent in 2012. All company types increased. Manufacturers increased by 6.8 percent, wholesalers by 7.7 percent and other companies by 7.6 percent (Exhibit 1c). The number of multiple location importing companies increased by 11.3 percent in 2012. The number of manufacturers increased 7.1 percent, wholesalers 12.9 percent, and other companies by 14.5 percent (Exhibit 1f). Figure 2 shows the concentration by percent of known export and import values. Of the known export value for 2012, 61.4 percent was accounted for by the top 500 companies. The top 250 companies accounted for 52.1 percent of the known export value. For imports, 68.2 percent of the known value was accounted for by the top 500 companies and 60.1 percent of the total known import value was accounted for by the top 250 importers. For exports, the top 100 manufacturers contributed 33.9 percent of the total known export value and 55.8 percent of all exports by manufacturers (Exhibit 2a). For imports, the top 100 manufacturers contributed 32.9 percent of the total known import value and 69.1 of all imports by manufacturers (Exhibit 2c). Among the company types, the top 50 manufacturers accounted for 45.8 percent of the known export value of the manufacturing sector. The top 50 companies represented 35.5 percent of the known export value for wholesalers and 40.2 percent of the known value for other companies (Exhibit 2a). For imports, the top 50 importing manufacturers accounted for 59.8 percent of the known value of this sector. The top 50 companies represented 33.5 percent of the known import value for wholesalers and about 63.6 percent of the known value for other companies (Exhibit 2c). Figure 3 shows the number of identified companies with both exports and imports. During 2012, 83,800 companies both exported and imported goods, 221,067 companies only exported goods, and 101,929 companies only imported goods. The companies that both exported and imported in 2012 accounted for 85.1 percent of the known export value and 94.1 percent of the known import value. Among companies that both imported and exported goods, 30.5 percent were manufacturers, 47.6 percent were wholesalers, and 21.9 percent were other (Exhibits 1a, 1d, and 1g). Large-Sized Companies Large identified companies (those employing 500 or more workers) were responsible for 67.4 percent of the known export value and 69.1 percent of known import value. They represented only 2.3 percent of all identified exporters and 2.9 percent of all known importers (Exhibits 1a and 1d). Large companies dominated manufacturers’ exports, with 3.4 percent of manufacturing exporters (2,552 of 74,520) accounting for 81.9 percent of manufacturing export value ($686 billion of $837 billion). Similarly, large wholesalers, who comprise 0.8 percent of the wholesalers who export, accounted for 37.8 percent of the value of known exports by wholesalers. Large companies in the "other" category represented 2.7 percent of the identified exporters in the "other" category, and 54.6 percent of the known value. Large manufacturers’ export value to related parties represented 30.7 percent of the manufacturers’ total known export value (Exhibit 3a). Large companies comprised 6.3 percent of manufacturing importers (2,308 of 36,727) accounting for 86.4 percent of manufacturing import value ($826 billion of $956 billion). Large wholesalers, who comprise approximately 0.9 percent of the wholesalers who import, accounted for 41.0 percent of the value of known imports by wholesalers. (Exhibit 1d). Large companies accounted for 5.6 percent of those that both exported and imported goods in 2012. These large companies represented 77.6 percent of the known export value and 73.1 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 97.7 percent of all identified exporters and 97.1 percent of all identified importers. They account for 32.6 percent and 30.9 percent of the known export and import value, respectively. The following findings were extracted from Exhibits 1a, 1d, 1g, and 7a: * 96.6 percent of manufacturing exporters were small- and medium-sized companies and they contributed 18.1 percent of the sector's $837 billion in exports. 93.7 percent of manufacturing importers were small- and medium-sized; they accounted for 13.6 percent of the sector’s $956 billion in imports. * 99.2 percent of exporting wholesalers were small- and medium-sized companies; they accounted for 62.2 percent of the sector’s $307 billion in exports. 99.1 percent of wholesaler importers were small- and medium-sized; they contributed 59.0 percent of the sector’s $591 billion in imports. * 97.3 percent of other companies with exports were small- and medium-sized companies. 96.4 percent of importing other companies were small- and medium-sized. * Among companies that both exported and imported in 2012, small- and medium-sized companies accounted for 94.4 percent of such companies, accounting for 22.4 percent of the known export value and 26.9 percent of the known import value. * Among 3-digit NAICS for wholesale industries, Wholesale Electronic Markets and Agents & Brokers (NAICS 425) experienced the largest percent increase in export value by small- and medium-sized companies from 2011 to 2012 at 12.0 percent. For 3-digit manufacturing industry NAICS, Transportation Equipment Manufacturing (NAICS 336) saw the largest percent increase in export value by small- and medium-sized companies at 28.6 percent. Export and Import Markets The country groups used in the 2012 Profile have been revised from those used in earlier Profiles (Exhibits 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d, 5e, 5f, 5g, and 5h). Please refer to the Technical Documentation for country grouping definitions. Most identified companies exported to (58.6 percent) or imported from (60.2 percent) only one foreign country. A small percentage of exporters, 0.4 percent, shipped to 50 or more countries; these companies accounted for 50.0 percent of the known export value (Exhibit 4a). Less than 0.1 percent of importing companies imported from 50 or more countries, accounting for 19.8 percent of the known import value (Exhibit 4c). In 2012, 81.8 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, China and Germany (Exhibit 5a). 90.3 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 71.6 percent of known export value to Canada in 2012 ($160 billion of $223 billion). Companies exporting to and importing from China represented 68.9 percent of known import value from China ($277 billion of $402 billion). In 2012, China, Germany, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Mexico were the top 5 countries with the largest number of identified U.S. companies which both exported to and imported from the specific country (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 2011 and 2012 based upon these definitions. (Note that the same company can be shown as exporting from or importing to multiple states.) * In 2012, 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 42.6 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 46.4 percent of the total known import value. * States recording the largest increases in known export value in 2012 were New Mexico (43.7 percent), Arkansas (39.4 percent), Nevada (30.0 percent), West Virginia (28.7 percent), and North Dakota (21.3 percent). North Dakota (28.2 percent), Iowa (18.4 percent), Nevada (16.2 percent), Alaska (14.9 percent), and South Dakota (14.0 percent) had the largest increases in known import value. * In 2012, 71,921 small- and medium-sized companies exported from California. Florida was second with 58,976 small- and medium-sized companies exporting from that state. California also had the highest proportion of small- and medium-sized exporters, with 95.9 percent; followed by Florida with 95.4 percent; and New York with 94.3 percent. Comparison of 2011 and 2012 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 2011 to 2012. Below are a number of noteworthy year-to-year changes (Exhibits 1c, 1f, 5c, and 5f): * The known export value increased by 4.1 percent. The number of identified exporting companies increased by 1,358 (0.4 percent). Single location companies decreased by 614 and multiple location companies increased by 1,972. * The known import value rose by 3.2 percent. The number of identified importing companies increased by 1,769 (1.0 percent). Single location companies decreased by 235 and multiple location companies increased by 2,004. * The number of small- and medium-sized exporting companies increased by 0.4 percent, from 296.8 thousand in 2011 to 298.0 thousand in 2012, while the number of large companies increased by 2.7 percent, from 6,692 to 6,872. * The number of exporting wholesalers rose by 0.6 percent from 101.4 thousand in 2011 to 102.0 thousand in 2012. Additionally, the number of exporting manufacturers increased by 0.6 percent from 74.1 thousand in 2011 to 74.5 thousand in 2012. * The number of importing wholesalers increased 0.7 percent from 82.5 in 2011 to 83.1 in 2012. Additionally, the number of importing manufacturers increased 1.0 percent from 36.3 thousand in 2011 to 36.7 thousand in 2012. * Of the top 25 U.S. export trading partners, Venezuela (5.5 percent), Colombia (4.0 percent), and Saudi Arabia (3.5 percent) showed the largest increases in the number of identified exporting companies between 2011 and 2012. Israel (5.1 percent), Belgium (5.0 percent), and Italy (4.8 percent) showed the largest percentage decreases. * Among the top 25 U.S. import trading partners, Vietnam (5.7 percent), Canada (4.2 percent), Mexico (3.0 percent), South Korea (2.9 percent), and Netherlands (2.6 percent) showed the largest percentage increases in the number of identified importing companies. * The release of "A Profile of U.S. Importing and Exporting Companies, 2011 - 2012", will be the first following a preliminary profile. Data users are reminded that the numbers shown in the Preliminary Profile used different methodology (link to Preliminary Profile: http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/Press-Release/edb/2012/2012prelimprofile.pdf). As noted, the data in the Preliminary Profile were subject to revision. However, prior research has shown that the methodology used to generate the preliminary data captures approximately 96 - 97% of the known value and approximately 99% of the identified exporters when compared to the final data. Using 2012 final data, the preliminary profile captured 96.6% of the known value, and 98.8% of the identified exporters. 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. 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.) 2012 Value % of 2012 Value 2011 Value % of 2011 Value Total exports 1,545,709 100.0 1,480,432 100.0 Low-value estimates 33,617 2.2 32,288 2.2 US & foreign governments 33 <0.1 61 <0.1 Identified exporters* (known value) 1,379,683 89.3 1,325,046 89.5 Exported merchandise in both 2011 and 2012 1,341,032 86.8 1,277,196 86.3 Exported merchandise in only 2011 or only 2012 38,652 2.5 47,850 3.2 Unidentified exports 132,376 8.6 123,036 8.3 Total Imports 2,275,320 100.0 2,207,824 100.0 Low-value estimates 12,986 0.1 14,043 0.6 Articles exported and returned, not advanced or improved in condition 48,688 2.1 41,515 1.9 Identified importers* (known value) 2,007,762 88.2 1,945,307 88.1 Imported merchandise in both 2011 and 2012 1,919,234 84.4 1,885,576 85.4 Imported merchandise in only 2011 or only 2012 88,529 3.9 59,731 2.7 Unidentified imports /1 205,884 9.0 206,958 9.4 *Number of Identified Companies 2012 2011 Both Years 2012 Only 2011 Only Exporters 304,867 303,509 200,700 104,167 102,809 Importers 185,729 183,960 130,612 55,117 53,348 * Note: Percentages may not add up to 100.0 percent due to rounding /1 Includes Canadian electricity and natural gas imports NOTICE With the release of the Final "Profile of U.S. Importing and Exporting Companies, 2011 - 2012" on April 3, 2014, the company NAICS category of Other Companies will be combined with the category of Unclassified Companies. In the Profile of U.S. Importing and Exporting Companies, company size details for Unclassified Companies are not shown. However, the company size details for Unclassified Companies could be created by data users by subtracting the company size details for Manufacturers, Wholesalers, and Other companies from the total of All Identified Companies. Because of disclosure requirements, the Unclassified Companies size details are therefore checked for disclosure and suppressed as required. This causes secondary suppression to be applied to the published data, often in the Other Companies category. By combining Other Companies with Unclassified Companies and publishing the resulting data as a single category, we will reduce the number of cells that need to be suppressed due to secondary suppression caused by the Unclassified Companies category. Copies of the importer and exporter profile are available by calling (301)763-2311 or at http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/aip/index.html#profile. TABLE OF CONTENTS Exhibit 1a. 2012 Exports by Company Type and Employment Size 11 Exhibit 1b. 2011 Exports by Company Type and Employment Size 13 Exhibit 1c. Percent Difference Between the 2011 and 2012 Export Results 15 Exhibit 1d. 2012 Imports by Company Type and Employment Size 17 Exhibit 1e. 2011 Imports by Company Type and Employment Size 19 Exhibit 1f. Percent Difference Between the 2011 and 2012 Import Results 21 Exhibit 1g. 2012 Exports and Imports by Company Type and Employment Size for Companies that both Export and Import 23 Exhibit 1h. 2011 Exports and Imports by Company Type and Employment Size for Companies that both Export and Import 25 Exhibit 2a. Top Companies’ Share of the 2012 Export Market by Company Type 27 Exhibit 2b. Top Companies’ Share of the 2011 Export Market by Company Type 28 Exhibit 2c. Top Companies’ Share of the 2012 Import Market by Company Type 29 Exhibit 2d. Top Companies’ Share of the 2011 Import Market by Company Type 30 Exhibit 3a. 2012 Exports to Related Parties by Company Type and Employment Size 31 Exhibit 3b. 2011 Exports to Related Parties by Company Type and Employment Size 33 Exhibit 4a. 2012 Exports by Company Type and Employment Size to Number of Partner Countries 35 Exhibit 4b. 2011 Exports by Company Type and Employment Size to Number of Partner Countries 36 Exhibit 4c. 2012 Imports by Company Type and Employment Size to Number of Partner Countries 37 Exhibit 4d. 2011 Imports by Company Type and Employment Size to Number of Partner Countries 38 Exhibit 5a. 2012 Exports by Company Employment Size to World Areas and Selected Countries 39 Exhibit 5b. 2011 Exports by Company Employment Size to World Areas and Selected Countries 40 Exhibit 5c. Percent Difference Between 2011 and 2012 Exports to World Areas and Selected Countries 41 Exhibit 5d. 2012 Imports by Company Employment Size from World Areas and Selected Countries 42 Exhibit 5e. 2011 Imports by Company Employment Size from World Areas and Selected Countries 43 Exhibit 5f. Percent Difference Between 2011 and 2012 Exports to World Areas and Selected Countries 44 Exhibit 5g. 2012 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 45 Exhibit 5h. 2011 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 46 Exhibit 6a. 2012 Exports by State of the Origin of Movement, Number of Exporting Companies, and Value 49 Exhibit 6b. 2011 Exports by State of the Origin of Movement, Number of Exporting Companies, and Value 50 Exhibit 6c. Percent Difference Between 2011 and 2012 Exports from Small- and Medium- Sized Companies 51 Exhibit 6d. 2012 Imports by State of Destination, Number of Importing Companies, Value, and Percent Difference Between the 2011 and 2012 Results 52 Exhibit 6e. 2011 Imports by State of Destination, Number of Importing Companies, and Value 53 Exhibit 7a. 2012 Exports by 3-Digit North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code for Small and Medium Sized Companies 54 Exhibit 7b. 2011 Exports by 3-Digit North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code for Small and Medium Sized Companies 56 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.