View original document

The full text on this page is automatically extracted from the file linked above and may contain errors and inconsistencies.

A-1

INFORMATION ON GOODS AND SERVICES
GOODS (CENSUS BASIS)
Data for goods on a Census basis 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. The exception is
Exhibit 17a, which shows CIF import value. The CIF (cost,
insurance, and freight) value represents the landed value of the
merchandise at the first port of arrival in the United States. It is
computed by adding import charges to the customs value and
therefore excludes U.S. import duties.
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.

Quarterly Revisions to Chain-Weighted Dollar Series: For
March, June, September, and December statistical month
releases, revisions are made to the real chained-dollar series
presented in Exhibits 10 and 11: the previous five months are
revised to incorporate the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ revisions
to price indexes, which are used to produce the real chaineddollar series and to align Census data with data published by the
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) in the National
Income and Product Accounts (NIPAs).
Annual Revisions: Each June, not seasonally adjusted goods
data are revised to redistribute monthly data that arrived too late
for inclusion in the month of transaction. In addition, revisions
are made to reflect corrections received subsequent to the
monthly revisions. Seasonally adjusted data are also revised to
reflect recalculated seasonal and trading-day adjustments. These
revisions are reflected in totals, end-use, commodity, and
country summary data.
Other Revisions: For December and January statistical month
releases, each prior month of the most recent full year is revised
so that the totals of the seasonally adjusted months equal the
annual totals.

U.S./CANADA DATA EXCHANGE AND
SUBSTITUTION
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.

REVISION PROCEDURE (CENSUS BASIS)
Monthly Revisions: Monthly data include actual month's
transactions as well as a small number of transactions for
previous months. Each month, the U.S. Census Bureau revises
the aggregate seasonally adjusted (current and real chaineddollar) and unadjusted export, import, and trade balance figures,
as well as the end-use totals for the prior month. Country detail
data and commodity detail data, based on the Standard
International Trade Classification (SITC) Revision 4 and the
North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), are
not revised monthly. The timing adjustment shown in Exhibit 14
is the difference between monthly data as originally reported
and as recompiled.
For March, unadjusted exports of goods were revised downward
less than $0.1 billion and unadjusted imports of goods were
revised upward $0.2 billion. Goods carry-over in April was less
than $0.1 billion (less than 0.1 percent) for exports and $0.4
billion (0.2 percent) for imports. For March, revised export
carry-over was less than $0.1 billion (less than 0.1 percent) and
revised import carry-over was $0.1 billion (less than 0.1
percent).

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 April 2016, these shipments totaled $176.2 million.
U.S. export coverage also excludes U.S. postal shipments to
Canada. For April 2016, these shipments totaled $20.2
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 than the Canadian import value. Canada
requires inland freight to be reported separately from the
value of the goods. Combining the inland freight and the
Canadian reported import value provides a consistent
valuation for all U.S. exports. Inland freight charges for
April 2016 accounted for 2.0 percent of the value of U.S.
exports to Canada.

A-2
3.

Re-exports - Unlike Canadian imports, which are based on
country of origin, U.S. exports include re-exports of foreign
goods. Therefore, the aggregate U.S. export figure is
slightly larger than the Canadian import figure. For April
2016, re-exports to Canada were $3,703.0 million.

4.

Exchange Rate - Average monthly exchange rates are
applied to convert the published data to U.S. currency. For
April 2016, the average exchange rate was 1.2818 Canadian
dollars per U.S. dollar.

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 at
www.census.gov/foreign-trade/aip/quality_profile10032014.pdf
or from the U.S. Census Bureau, Economic Indicators Division.

AREA GROUPINGS
North America: Canada, Mexico.

5.

Other - There are other minor differences, such as rounding
error, that are statistically insignificant.

Canadian Estimates: Effective with January 2001 statistics, the
current month data for exports to Canada contain an estimate for
late arrivals and corrections. In the following month, this
estimate is replaced, in the news release exhibits 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 that is
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. 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
aggregate 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.

Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free
Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR): Costa Rica, Dominican
Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua.
Europe: Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan,
Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 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, Croatia, 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, Estonia, Finland, France,
Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania,
Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia,
Spain.
Pacific Rim: Australia, Brunei, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia,
Japan, Korea (South), Macau, 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, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican
Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Falkland Islands (Islas
Malvinas), French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala,
Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat,
Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Sint
Maarten, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the
Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos
Islands, Uruguay, Venezuela.
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (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 Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cameroon,
Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo (Brazzaville),

A-3
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, South
Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda,
Western Sahara, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

ADJUSTMENTS FOR SEASONAL AND TRADINGDAY VARIATIONS
Goods are initially classified under the Harmonized Commodity
Description and Coding System (Harmonized System), which is
an internationally accepted standard for the commodity
classification of traded goods. The Harmonized System
describes and measures the characteristics of the goods and is
the basis for the systems used in the United States: Schedule B
for exports and Harmonized Tariff Schedule for imports.
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
trading-day adjusted data. These adjusted data are then summed
to the six end-use aggregates for publication (see Exhibit 6).
These data are provided to BEA, from the U.S. Census Bureau,
for use in the NIPAs and in the U.S International Transactions
Accounts (balance of payments accounts).
Exhibit 19 shows goods (Census Basis) that are seasonally
adjusted for selected countries and world areas. Unlike the
commodity-based adjustments discussed above, these
adjustments are developed and applied directly at the country
and world area levels. For total exports and imports, data users
should refer to the commodity-based totals shown in the other
exhibits. The seasonally adjusted country and world area data
will not sum to the seasonally adjusted commodity-based totals
because the seasonally adjusted country and world area data and
the commodity-based totals are derived from different
aggregations of the export and import data and from different
seasonal adjustment models. Data users should use caution
drawing comparisons between the two sets of seasonally
adjusted series.
The seasonal adjustment procedure (X13-ARIMA-SEATS) is
based on a model that estimates the monthly movements as
percentages above or below the general level of series (unlike
other methods that redistribute the actual series values over the
calendar year). Because the data series for aircraft is highly
variable, users studying data trends may wish to analyze trade in
aircraft separately from other trade.

ADJUSTMENTS FOR PRICE CHANGE
Data adjusted for seasonal variation on a real chained-dollar
basis (2009 base year) are presented in Exhibits 10 and 11. This
adjustment for price change is done using the Fisher chainweighted methodology. The deflators are primarily based on the
monthly price indexes published by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics using techniques developed for the NIPAs by BEA.

PRINCIPAL COMMODITIES
Goods data appearing in Exhibit 15 are classified in terms of the
SITC Revision 4, with the exception of agricultural and
manufactured goods. Agricultural goods are defined by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA); they consist of non-marine
food products and other products of agriculture that have not
passed through complex processes of manufacture.
Manufactured goods conform to the NAICS; they consist of
goods that have been mechanically, physically, or chemically
transformed. USDA agricultural goods and NAICS
manufactured goods are not mutually exclusive categories.
Re-exports are foreign merchandise entering the country as
imports and then exported in substantially the same condition as
when imported. Re-exports, included in overall export totals,
appear as separate line items in Exhibit 15.

ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTS
About 500 of some 22,000 Schedule B and Harmonized Tariff
Schedule 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 that appears in Exhibits 16 and 16a. This
product- and commodity-based measure of advanced technology
differs from broader NAICS-based measures, which include all
goods produced by a particular industry group, regardless of the
level of technology embodied in the goods.

GOODS (BALANCE OF PAYMENTS BASIS) AND
SERVICES
Quarterly and annual statistics for goods on a balance of
payments (BOP) basis and for services are included in the U.S.
International Transactions Accounts (ITAs), which are
published by BEA in news releases in March, June, September,
and December and in the Survey of Current Business in the
January, April, July, and October issues. The next release of the
ITAs is scheduled for June 16, 2016. The Survey of Current
Business is available online at www.bea.gov/scb/index.htm.

GOODS (BALANCE OF PAYMENTS BASIS)
Goods on a Census basis are adjusted by BEA to a BOP basis to
align the data with the concepts and definitions used to prepare
the international and national economic accounts. These
adjustments, which are applied separately to exports and
imports, are necessary to supplement coverage of the Census
data, to eliminate duplication of transactions recorded elsewhere

A-4
in the international accounts, and to value transactions at market
prices. They include both additions to and deductions from
goods on a Census basis and are presented in this release as net
adjustments. Adjustments that exhibit significant seasonal
patterns are seasonally adjusted. BEA also publishes more
detailed quarterly and annual statistics for net adjustments in
ITA Table 2.4. U.S. International Trade in Goods, Balance of
Payments Adjustments and in the January, April, July, and
October issues of the Survey of Current Business.
The export adjustments include:
Exports under U.S. military sales contracts - This
adjustment reflects the net amount of two separate
adjustments. BEA first deducts goods identified in the
Census data as exports under the U.S. Foreign Military
Sales program. BEA then adds primary source data for
these exports, which are reported to BEA by the U.S.
Department of Defense.

Imports by U.S. military agencies - This addition is made
for purchases of goods abroad by U.S. military agencies,
which are reported to BEA by the U.S. Department of
Defense. The Census data only include imports of goods by
U.S. military agencies that enter the U.S. customs territory.
Inland freight in Canada and Mexico - This addition is
made for inland freight in Canada and Mexico. Imports of
goods from all countries should be valued at the customs
value—the value at the foreign port of export including
inland freight charges. For imports from Canada and
Mexico, this should be the cost of the goods at the U.S.
border. However, the customs value for imports for certain
Canadian and Mexican goods is the point of origin in
Canada or Mexico. BEA makes an addition for the inland
freight charges of transporting these goods to the U.S.
border to make the value comparable to the customs value
reported for imports from other countries.
Other adjustments to imports include:

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 U.S. customs territory.
Goods procured in U.S. ports by foreign carriers - This
addition is made for foreign air and ocean carriers’ fuel
purchases in U.S. ports.
Net exports of goods under merchanting - This addition
is made to include the net value of the purchase and
subsequent resale of goods abroad without the goods
entering the United States. Because these goods do not
cross the U.S. customs frontier, their value is not recorded
in the Census data.
Other adjustments to exports include:
Deductions for equipment repairs (parts and labor),
developed motion picture film, and military grant-aid.
Additions for sales of fish caught in U.S. territorial waters,
exports of electricity to Mexico, private gift parcels, vessels
and oil rigs for which ownership changes, valuation of
software exports at market value, and low-value (below
reporting threshold) transactions for 1999–2009 to phase in
a revised Census Bureau low-value methodology that was
implemented for goods on a Census basis beginning with
statistics for 2010.
The import adjustments include:
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 U.S.
customs territory.
Goods procured in foreign ports by U.S. carriers - This
addition is made for U.S. air and ocean carriers’ fuel
purchases in foreign ports.

Deductions for equipment repairs (parts and labor), repairs
to U.S. vessels abroad, and developed motion picture film.
Additions for non-reported imports of locomotives and
railcars, imports of electricity from Mexico, conversion of
vessels for commercial use, valuation of software imports at
market value, and low-value (below reporting threshold)
transactions for 1999–2009 to phase in a revised Census
Bureau low-value methodology that was implemented for
goods on a Census basis beginning with statistics for 2010.

SERVICES
The services statistics cover 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 these
installations are considered to be part of the U.S. economy.
Services statistics are based on quarterly, annual, and
benchmark surveys and information obtained from monthly
government and industry reports. For categories for which
monthly data are not available, monthly statistics are derived
from quarterly statistics through temporal distribution, or
interpolation. The interpolation methodology used by BEA is
the modified Denton proportional first difference method. This
method preserves the pattern of the monthly indicator series, if
available, while satisfying the annual aggregation constraints.
See “An Empirical Review of Methods for Temporal
Distribution and Interpolation in the National Accounts” for
more information. Services are seasonally adjusted when
statistically significant seasonal patterns are present.
Services are shown in nine broad categories. The following is a
brief description of the types of services included in each
category:
Maintenance and repair services n.i.e.
elsewhere) - Consists of maintenance and
performed by residents of one country on
owned by residents of another country. The

(not included
repair services
goods that are
repairs may be

A-5
performed at the site of the repair facility or elsewhere.
Excludes such services in which the cost is included in the
price of the goods and is not billed separately or is declared
as a part of the price of the goods on the import or export
declaration filed with the U.S. Customs and Border
Protection. Maintenance and repair of computers are
included under computer services, and some maintenance
and repair of ships, aircraft, and other transport equipment
are included under transport services.
Transport - Consists of transactions associated with
moving people and freight from one location to another and
includes related supporting and auxiliary services.
Transport covers all modes of transportation, including air,
sea, rail, road, space, and pipeline. Postal and courier
services and port services, which cover cargo handling,
storage and warehousing, and other related transport
services, are also included.
Travel (for all purposes including education) - Includes
goods and services acquired by nonresidents while abroad.
A traveler is defined as a person who stays, or intends to
stay, for less than one year in a country of which he or she
is not a resident or as a nonresident whose purpose is to
obtain education or medical treatment, no matter how long
the stay. Purchases can be either for own use or for gifts to
others. Travel is a transactor-based component that covers a
variety of goods and services, primarily lodging, meals,
transportation in the country of travel, amusement,
entertainment, and gifts. Excludes air passenger services for
travel between countries, which are included in transport,
and goods for resale, which are included in goods.
Travel includes business and personal travel. Business
travel covers goods and services acquired for use by
persons whose primary purpose for travel is for business
(including goods and services for which business travelers
are reimbursed by employers). Business travel also includes
expenditures by border, seasonal, and other short-term
workers in their economy of employment. Personal travel
covers travel for all non-business purposes, including for
medical or educational purposes.
Insurance services - Includes the direct insurance services
of providing life insurance and annuities, non-life (property
and casualty) insurance, reinsurance, freight insurance, and
auxiliary insurance services. Insurance is measured as
gross premiums earned plus premium supplements less
claims payable, with an adjustment for claims volatility.
Premium supplements represent investment income from
insurance reserves, which are attributed to policyholders
who are treated as paying the income back to the insurer.
Auxiliary insurance services include agents’ commissions,
brokerage services, insurance consulting services, actuarial
services, and other insurance services.
Financial services - Includes financial intermediary and
auxiliary services, except insurance services. These services
include those normally provided by banks and other
financial institutions. Services primarily include those for
which an explicit commission or a fee is charged; implicit
fees for bond transactions, measured as the difference

between bid and ask prices, are also included. Services
include securities brokerage and underwriting, financial
management, financial advisory, and custody services;
credit and other credit-related services; and securities
lending, electronic funds transfer, and other services.
Charges for the use of intellectual property n.i.e. Includes charges for the use of proprietary rights, such as
patents, trademarks, and copyrights, and charges for
licenses to use, reproduce, distribute, and sell or purchase
intellectual property.
Telecommunications, computer, and information
services - Telecommunications services include the
broadcast or transmission of sound, images, data, or other
information by electronic means. These services do not
include the value of the information transmitted. Computer
services consist of hardware- and software-related services
and data processing services. Sales of customized software
and related use licenses, as well as licenses to use noncustomized software with a periodic license fee, are also
included, as is software downloaded or otherwise
electronically delivered. Cross-border transactions in noncustomized packaged software with a license for perpetual
use are included in goods. Information services include
news agency services, database services, and web search
portals.
Other business services - Consists of research and
development services, professional and management
consulting services, and technical, trade-related, and other
business services. Research and development services
include services associated with basic and applied research
and experimental development of new products and
processes. Professional and management consulting
services include legal services, accounting, management
consulting, managerial services, public relations services,
advertising, and market research. Amounts received by a
parent company from its affiliates for general overhead
expenses related to these services are included. Technical,
trade-related, and other business services include
architectural and engineering, construction, audio-visual,
waste treatment, operational leasing, trade-related, and
other business services.
Government goods and services n.i.e. - Includes goods
and services supplied by and to enclaves, such as
embassies, military bases, and international organizations;
goods and services acquired from the host economy by
diplomats, consular staff, and military personnel located
abroad and their dependents; and services supplied by and
to governments that are not included in other services
categories. Services supplied by and to governments are
classified to specific services categories when source data
permit.

GOODS (BOP BASIS) AND SERVICES BY COUNTRY
AND AREA
Monthly country and area detail is not available for goods on a
BOP basis or for services. However, quarterly statistics on

A-6
goods on a BOP basis and on services that are seasonally
adjusted by geography are shown in Exhibit 20. Unlike the
seasonal adjustments by commodity and by service type that are
applied to the global totals, these adjustments are developed and
applied directly at the country and world area levels. For total
exports and imports, data users should refer to the bycommodity and by-service type totals shown in the other
exhibits. The seasonally adjusted country and world area data
will not sum to the seasonally adjusted by-commodity and byservice type totals because the two sets of statistics are derived
from different aggregations of the export and import data and
from different seasonal adjustment models. Data users should
use caution drawing comparisons between the two sets of
seasonally adjusted series.
The definitions of the world areas shown in Exhibit 20 are
consistent with the definitions for goods on a Census basis (see
AREA GROUPINGS above) with a few exceptions. For services,
CAFTA-DR is not available because trade with this area’s
member countries cannot be separately identified. For goods on
a BOP basis and for services, European Union and OPEC reflect
the composition of the areas as they were at the time of
reporting.

REVISION PROCEDURE (GOODS ON A BOP BASIS
AND SERVICES)
Monthly Revisions: Each month, a preliminary estimate for the
current month and a revised estimate for the immediately
preceding month are released. After the initial revision, no
further revisions are made to a month until more complete
source data become available in March, June, September, and
December.
Quarterly Revisions: The releases in March, June, September,
and December contain revised estimates for the previous six
months to incorporate more comprehensive and updated source
data.
Annual Revisions: Each June, historical data are revised to
incorporate newly available and revised source data, changes in
definitions and classifications, and changes in estimation
methods. Seasonally adjusted data are also revised to reflect
recalculated seasonal and trading-day adjustments.
Other Revisions: The release in March contains revisions to
goods for January through November of the most recent year
and the release in March contains revisions to both goods and
services for all months of the most recent year. These revisions
result from forcing the seasonally adjusted months to equal the
annual totals.

DATA AVAILABILITY
The U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services news
release (FT-900) and the FT-900 Supplement are available at the
following:
www.census.gov/ft900
www.bea.gov/newsreleases/international/trade/tradnewsrelease.
htm

MONTHLY RELEASE SCHEDULE
Statistical Month

Date

Day

January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October

03-04-16
04-05-16
05-04-16
06-03-16
07-06-16
08-05-16
09-02-16
10-05-16
11-04-16
12-06-16

Friday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Friday
Wednesday
Friday
Friday
Wednesday
Friday
Tuesday