Global Reach Blog

Trade Deficit Increases in January

Posted on March 9, 2012 by katrinarosen

For January 2012, the trade deficit in goods and services increased to $52.6 billion from $50.4 billion (revised) in December, as the $4.7 billion increase in imports outpaced the $2.6 billion increase in exports. January imports of $233.4 billion were a record.

January saw record imports of Capital Goods ($44.7 billion); Automotive Vehicles, Parts, and Engines ($25.3 billion); and Foods, Feeds, and Beverages ($9.6 billion). Exports of Capital Goods ($43.2 billion) and Automotive Vehicles, Parts, and Engines ($12.7 billion) were also records in January.

As is typical with the January statistical month release, a few methodological and organizational changes were introduced to the U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services Report. The most significant of these is the introduction of an additional level of seasonal adjustment to the chained dollar series (Exhibits 10 and 11). The underlying data used to calculate the chained dollar data has always been seasonally adjusted, but with January 2012 statistics we have also started seasonally adjusting the prices used to deflate the data to the 2005 base year. For those interested, more information on the chain-weighting process, and seasonal adjustment of chained dollars can be found here and here. New seasonally adjusted data are available back to January 2010.

For more information on past and present changes to the U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services, or to sign up to be notified by email when changes occur, go to the Foreign Trade Statistical Notices page.

globalEDGE: A World of Resources, A World of Opportunities!

Posted on February 29, 2012 by danielcariello

by Jade Sims, Michigan State University International Business Center

If you are like most business owners in the United States, you are constantly working to target the best opportunities for your firm within the constraints of more and more limited resources. You’ve heard of all the buzzwords and the hot global markets—but how will they relate to you? In order to be a global leader, you need quick and affordable access to up-to-the-minute and relevant information.

Long before we learned to “google” information, international business professionals have utilized the most complete resource for locating opportunities for their firms. globalEDGE is a one-stop shop—bringing together the most up-to-date and relevant economic, political, and cultural data from thousands of sources. This information is crucial for new to export and seasoned multinational corporations alike.

Free and user-friendly access includes:

Search options by country, industry, and trading block
Concise, informative, at-a-glance statistics for over 200 countries
Over 70 interactive modules on doing business in different countries
Exporting tutorials (produced from A Basic Guide to Exporting and in conjunction with the US Department of Commerce)
Four interactive diagnostic tools that help companies assess their readiness to export, and select international partners, distributors, and freight forwarders
A Market Potential Index (MPI) to assist companies in evaluating emerging markets overseas
Country insights, comparisons & rankings
Resource directory
A network of over 47,000 professionals
Daily current blog topics relating to international business news

globalEDGE is developed and maintained by the International Business Center at Michigan State University. A federally-funded national resource center and Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER), the Center provides support to small and medium-size firms seeking to develop overseas markets in order to strengthen international competitiveness. Programs for business include export training, market information & research, networking opportunities, and online tools. We are also proud to partner with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation in the execution of its SBA State Trade Export Promotion (STEP) program.

Posted in Foreign Trade Data | Tagged exporting tutorials, globaledge, how to find distributors, International Business Center in Michigan State University, selecting business partners overseas, Trade Data, trade statistics | Leave a comment

Other Countries Have Exporter Data Too??

Posted on February 22, 2012 by rosannatorres

By: Ryan

The process of linking trade data to business statistics is the nuts and bolts of creating our Profile of U.S. Importing and Exporting Companies. You may already be familiar with our Profile (just in case you aren’t: http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/Press-Release/edb/2009/index.html) and the data that are available in it, but did you know that there are equivalent data available for over a dozen other countries too? The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) conveniently collects these data from each participating country, but only after each country standardizes them to classifications set by the OECD.

Knowledge Share

The OECD aims to foster international economic development. One of the ways it does this is by providing a forum for governments to knowledge-share. On top of collecting and showcasing data, the OECD hosts multiple conferences every year where participating countries can discuss all the aspects of linking trade data to business statistics. The main topics that are focused on are methodologies of linking the data as well as the best ways that this type of data can be used for the formation of trade policy.

Apples to Apples

An essential way for tools like this to be more effective is to make sure that participating parties have apples-to-apples data to compare. While the OECD offers all sorts of data, which you can look at by clicking the hyperlink at the end of this blog, the exhibit that includes data similar to the Profile is their Trade by Enterprise Characteristics (TEC) tables.

Here’s an example of data from one of these tables:

Example of a Trade by Enterprise Characteristics Table

In the first drop down menu of this exhibit you can see that the industry category is classified by “ISIC sector.” To standardize the data of all the participating countries, the industry classifications in the data are converted to the International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities, or, thankfully, just “ISIC.” You will also notice in the screenshot that company sizes in the OECD data are classified differently compared to the Profile data. The last difference is that products are classified in the OECD data by the Central Product Classification (CPC) system. The above screenshot does not contain any product codes, but there is a table in the TEC series that does. As promised, all of OECD’s publicly available data are available here.

If you’d like to take a closer look at the TEC tables, click the “Get real-time data” link, to the right of “Trade by enterprise size class” under the “Trade” section. From there, you will be taken to another page that has all of the TEC tables listed in the column to the left. Open the “Trade by Enterprise Characteristics (ISIC rev.4)” tab to see the tables with U.S. data for 2008 and 2009, as well as the other participant countries.

Posted in Foreign Trade Data | Tagged Comparable Data, Economic Development, OECD, Profile of U.S. Importing and Exporting Companies, TEC, Trade by Enterprise Characteristics | Leave a comment

USPPI: Trade Term of the Month

Posted on February 16, 2012 by rosannatorres

Throughout the export community, trade terminology runs rampant.

A FPPI places an order with a USPPI who prepares an EEI and files via AES then provides an ITN to CBP and does the hokey pokey and turns himself around and … that’s what it’s all about!

For someone new to the jargon, or even for a seasoned exporter, it can all be a bit overwhelming. We’d like to remove some confusion with a new blog series – Trade Term of the Month. Each month, we’ll identify a commonly used acronym or terminology and break down exactly what it means for you.

The February Trade Term of the Month is USPPI. U.S. Principal Party in Interest, or USPPI as you will commonly see it, is the U.S. person or entity that is the primary benefactor (monetarily or otherwise) from an export transaction. Generally, the USPPI falls into one of the following categories:

U.S. Seller (wholesaler or distributor)
U.S. Manufacturer
U.S. Order Party

Simply put, if a U.S. manufacturing company receives an order from a foreign entity for their goods; they are now considered the USPPI in this export transaction, as they are the U.S. entity that would receive the financial benefit.

In export transactions, the USPPI has several responsibilities, including, but not limited to:

Preparing and filing the Electronic Export Information (EEI) in the Automated Export System (AES)
Selecting and authorizing an agent to file in AES on their behalf
Determining any license requirements for the goods
Responding to AES fatal errors or compliance alerts
Retaining documentation for at least 5 years

For more information about USPPI, please visit the AES Section of the Foreign Trade Division website. You can also find USPPI and other trade terms in our Definitions page.

Posted in Trade Terms | Tagged aes, Foreign Trade Regulations, U.S. Principal Party in Interest, US Manufacturer, US Order Party, US Seller, USPPI | Leave a comment

Record Goods and Services Trade in 2011

Posted on February 10, 2012 by faymjohnson

by Fay

First, let’s take a quick look at the trade numbers for December 2011. For December, the trade deficit in goods and services increased to $48.8 billion from $47.1 billion (revised) in November, as imports increased $3.0 billion and exports increased $1.2 billion.

For the year, the deficit increased to $558.0 billion in 2011 from $500.0 billion in 2010, as imports increased $323.5 billion and exports increased $265.5 billion. Both exports ($2.1 trillion) and imports ($2.7 trillion) of goods and services were records in 2011, while the deficit was still substantially lower than its record high of $753.3 billion in 2006.

Lets take a look at the growth in exports starting from 2009 when the National Export Initiative (NEI) began. Goods and services exports grew $265.5 billion or 14.5% in 2011 from 2010, this is slightly larger dollar growth than the 2010 export growth of $262.5 billion. Goods exports on a Census basis grew $202.4 billion in 2011, down from the growth of $222.2 billion in 2010, but still a substantial growth rate of 15.8%. The graphs of the month show what geographic regions and commodities are leading this growth.

Industrial supplies and materials lead export growth in both 2010 and 2011. In 2011 exports of other petroleum products and fuel oil accounted for $41.1 billion of the increase in exports in this category. Check out the graph of the month for October to look at the trends in these two commodities or Exhibit 7 of the release for detail on all commodity exports.

58% of the 2011 export growth was accounted for by an increase in exports to North America and Asia. Just four countries: Mexico, Canada, China and Hong Kong, accounted for 46% of the growth. For more information on the top countries for export growth, click here.

Posted in Foreign Trade Data | Tagged exports, imports, Industrial Supply Exports, NEI, trade deficit, Trade Numbers December 2011 | Leave a comment

Record Success for USA Pavilion at Arab Health 2012

Posted on February 1, 2012 by rosannatorres

Last week the Arab Health 2012 was held. This is the largest medical products and services show in the Middle East (second only to Medica in the world). The show welcomed around 200 U.S. exhibitors, including 150 in the USA Pavilion. Ambassador Michael Corbin and Acting Minister of Health HE Abdul Rahman Al Owais participated in the ribbon cutting ceremony.

In a program organized by Christian Koschil of the Chicago U.S. Export Assistance Center and Lisa Huot of the Trade Fair Certification Office, Commercial Sepcialists from the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia (Riyadh and Dhahran), Oman, and Bahrain counseled U.S. exhibitors. Steve Miller of the Office of Service Industries brought a delegation of nine America hospitals under the University HealthSystem Consortium Market Development Cooperative Program. There was also presence from representatives from the U.S. Census Bureau. William Bostic, Jr. and Richard Preuss counseled U.S. exhibitors on how to use U.S. trade data. Over $20 million in export successes were recorded at the show.

What a success!

Posted in Foreign Trade Data | Tagged census bureau, export assistance, Foreign Trade Data, medical product exports, trade shows | Leave a comment

I’ve never seen this pop-up before? Did the system change?

Posted on January 25, 2012 by rosannatorres

By: Eric

As previously mentioned, AESDirect has a new platform and new servers. As part of the transition process, some changes were made to the checks and validations in AESDirect. Let’s take a look at changes that have generated the most feedback from the trade community:

1- Transportation Reference Number

The Transportation Reference Number is a conditional field to be reported for certain shipments. The only time a Transportation Reference Number is required is when the shipment’s mode of transportation is vessel. The field is optional if the mode of transportation is air or truck.

If you report a transportation reference number and receive the above message, it means the format you have entered for the transportation reference number is incorrect. You need to enter the number using an “NNN-NNNNNNNN” format.

2- Port of Unlading

The Port of Unlading field is required for all vessel shipments and any air shipments between the United States and Puerto Rico. Some users are attempting to provide the port of unlading code even if it is not required. Previously, AESDirect would allow you to enter the code, however; the website will no longer accept the code when it is not required.

3- 1^st Quantity to Report when Units for 1^st Quantity shows “No Unit Required”

The Schedule B or Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) field is required for every shipment except when reporting household goods. If you select Export Code HH for exports of personal and household goods or tools of the trade, do not report a quantity for the commodity. Leave the field blank.

Once you enter your Schedule B or HTS Number, AESDirect will automatically populate the unit of measure required for the 1^st and 2nd quantity. If the unit of measure indicates “No Unit Required”, do not enter a 1st or 2nd quantity. Leave the field blank. Otherwise, you will see the following pop-up message:

4- Phone Number Format

Phone numbers in AESDirect must be reported without any dashes, parentheses, or other characters to avoid getting the error message above.

We appreciate your patience and accommodation through the recent transition. Be mindful that the changes to the system have improved data accuracy and have significantly reduced fatal errors. This is ultimately helping us to help you get it right the first time!

Posted in Export Filing | Tagged aes, AESDirect, Automated Export System, conditional, data fields, Global Reach, hts number, new pop up messages, new servers, phone number format, popup blocker, required, schedule b, Transition changes, transportation reference number, us census bureau | Leave a comment

National Export Initiative Priority Markets: Vietnam

Posted on January 18, 2012 by rosannatorres

The U.S. Commercial Service is the trade promotion arm of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration. U.S. Commercial Service trade professionals in over 100 U.S. cities and in more than 75 countries help U.S. companies get started in exporting or increase sales to new global markets. *So far this year, we have helped American business achieve 6,400 export success stories.*

This is a featured video from the National Export Initiative Priority Markets series.

Vietnam

Download full video .mp4 (16MB)

Vietnam is a true emerging market, offering ground floor and growing opportunities for U.S. exporters and investors. Vietnam’s economic growth rate has been among the highest in the world, expanding at an average of 7.2 percent per year from 2001 to 2010. Since the 2001 Bilateral Trade Agreement, trade between the U.S. and Vietnam has increased over six-fold, from $2.9 billion in 2002 to $18.6 billion in 2010. In 2010, U.S. exports to Vietnam grew by 19.8 percent to $3.7 billion.

For more information about Vietnam:

Vietnam Market Research

Upcoming Vietnam Trade Events

U.S. Commercial Service Vietnam

Posted in Foreign Trade Data | Tagged aes, Bilateral Trade Agreement, EEI, exporters, Exporting to Vietnam, ftr, Markets, National Export Initiative, NEI, Potential buyers, trade agreements, US Commercial Service, Vietnam Imports | 1 Comment

U.S. Trade Deficit Increases in November

Posted on January 13, 2012 by rosannatorres

U.S. Trade November 2011

By: Janet

A decrease in November exports and an increase in imports resulted in a rise in the Nation’s international trade deficit in goods and services to $47.8 billion compared to $43.3 billion (revised) in October. November exports, $177.8 billion, were $1.5 billion less than October exports of $179.4 billion. November imports, $225.6 billion, were $2.9 billion more than October imports of $222.6 billion.

The decrease in exports of goods reflected decreases in industrial supplies and materials ($1.6 billion); capital goods ($0.2 billion); other goods ($0.2 billion); and automotive vehicles, parts, and engines ($0.2 billion). November saw a record high of exports of consumer goods ($15.7 billion) and exports to China ($9.9 billion) were the highest since December 2010 ($10.1 billion). The increase in imports of goods reflected increases in industrial supplies and materials ($2.7 billion); automotive vehicles, parts, and engines ($0.8 billion); other goods ($0.6 billion); and capital goods ($0.1 billion).

After five consecutive months of decreases, the October to November 2011 trade statistics show an increase in the average price per barrel of crude oil go from $98.84 to $102.5. This increase broke the downward trend that started in May 2011 when the average price per barrel of crude oil was $108.70. (See Exhibit 17 of the FT900). The graph below shows the average price per barrel of crude oil from January 2010 through November 2011.

Posted in Foreign Trade Data | Tagged Deficit increases in November, exports, imports, oil, trade deficit, Trade numbers, us commerce, us trade balance | Leave a comment

Important Pop-Ups in AESDirect

Posted on January 4, 2012 by nidaaljubran

By Nidaal

Filers that transmit Electronic Export Information (EEI) through the AESDirect system must wait for the automated response with their Internal Transaction Number. Sometimes, the response never comes through. Most of the time this can be resolved in one quick step – by disabling the ‘pop-up blocker’ in your web browser.

Basic Diagram of the Pop-Ups

Click to view Pop-Up Messages

Believe it or not, AESDirect does require the use of these ‘pop-ups’ to perform edits and validations on the data so it can be transmitted to AES for final processing. If your ‘pop-up blocker’ is enabled, you may not be receiving those required prompts and your data will not be delivered to the AES.

The most important pop-up is a confirmation that your EEI has been submitted to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection for processing.

If you do not see this pop-up, please follow the directions below to enable your pop-up windows. It is very important that you receive this last prompt!

To avoid this in the future, please make sure to navigate to your browser’s ‘pop-up’ preferences.

Internet Explorer