Global Reach

Record Goods and Services Trade in 2011

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.

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Record Success for USA Pavilion at Arab Health 2012

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!

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

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!

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National Export Initiative Priority Markets: Vietnam

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

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U.S. Trade Deficit Increases in November

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. 

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Important Pop-Ups in AESDirect

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

 Firefox

Safari

     

Chrome

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National Export Initiative Priority Markets: India

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.

India

Download full video .mp4 (14MB)

India is seeing rapid economic growth, a growing middle class, and increased urbanization. India’s GDP in 2009 was the 11th largest in the world and 4th-largest in purchasing-power parity terms. GDP growth is expected to reach approximately 8% each year through 2015. Between 2002 and 2009, U.S. goods exports to India quadrupled, growing from $4.1 billion to more than $16.4 billion. India has large potential for investments in infrastructure in order to continue its growth: Over $1 trillion in infrastructure development needs between now and 2030 including in energy (renewable and civil nuclear), health care (medical technology, pharmaceuticals, and health IT), defense and homeland security, civil aviation (aircraft and infrastructure), retail and franchising, and ICT.

For more information about India:

India Market Research

Upcoming India Trade Events

U.S. Commercial Service India

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Tales from the Road

By: Eric

You may have seen blog announcements or AES Broadcast emails promoting AES Compliance Seminars and AESPcLink workshops; but what do these training sessions actually cover? How do they help improve your export compliance?

This past July, I presented at an AES Compliance Seminar and conducted AESPcLink workshops in Laredo, Texas. This was my third AES Compliance Seminar as a presenter, also having participated in seminars in Miami, Florida and San Juan, Puerto Rico. This was my first time presenting at a seminar in Laredo, which is always a well attended event. This seminar had 126 attendees, the biggest crowd to which that I have ever presented. Because of the area's trade-based economy, there were a lot of specific questions concerning day-to-day business needs and participants were very concerned about maintaining export compliance.

What do the attendees at AES Compliance Seminars learn about?

The AES Compliance Seminar starts with a presentation from the Regulations, Outreach, and Education Branch (ROEB). ROEB talks about the Foreign Trade Regulations (FTR), for example, routed export transactions, filing timeframes, and other regulatory topics. Following the ROEB presentation, a representative from our Commodity Analysis Branch (CAB) instructs attendees on how to classify commodities based on the General Rules of Interpretation. During the afternoon, officers from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) explain their requirements and how they enforce export compliance at their local port(s) of export. The day ends with a presentation from an Automated Export System Branch (AESB) representative. We provide an overview of AES and the AESDirect system and give helpful information on actions to take before, during, and after filing the Electronic Export Information (EEI).

The next day, consists of two AESPcLink workshop sessions available. The workshop sessions cover everything from registering for an AESDirect account and filing EEI via AESPcLink, to completing the certification quiz. Participants will learn how to create and submit sample shipments to the AES using AESPcLink, how to retrieve shipments to make updates, how to delete shipments and overall manage EEI.

Why should I go?

Aside from receiving export compliance training from the subject matter experts, one of the advantages of attending the seminar is to have a direct contact with Foreign Trade Division staff. Any questions that you may have about the FTR, AESDirect, or any other export compliance matter can be addressed in person. I always mention how exporters and filers that I meet at previous seminars continue to contact me with questions almost two years later, taking advantage of this great opportunity.

Although being in Laredo in the middle of July was definitely an extremely warm experience (and returning to Washington, DC during its worst heat wave in years was as well), it’s always rewarding to see how the seminars help the trade community file their export information correctly to the AES.

For more details about upcoming seminars and trainings, click the “Training and Events” icon to the right of this page.

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Domestic vs. Foreign Origin

By: Melannie

Exporters often ask: “How should I report a shipment for goods with the same schedule B, but composed of domestic and foreign origin?”

You want to be sure that you are accurately identifying the origin of your goods in order to properly file. So, if you are unsure as to whether your item should be reported as domestic or foreign, keep the following in mind:

• Domestic goods include commodities that are grown, produced, or manufactured in the United States, including goods exported from U.S. FTZs, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands. Shipments of foreign origin that were previously imported and are further manufactured or processed in the United States, or have been enhanced in value or changed from its original form will be reported as domestic.

• Foreign goods include commodities that are grown, produced, or manufactured in foreign countries and have not undergone changes in form or condition or enhancement in value by further manufacturing in the United States, in U.S. FTZs, in Puerto Rico, or in the U.S. Virgin Islands. This includes merchandise that has entered the United States and is being re-exported in the same condition as when imported.

After properly identifying the origin of your goods, you need to determine how the information should be filed in the AES. In Section 30.6 (a)(11) of the Foreign Trade Regulations, it states that items of domestic or foreign origin under the same Schedule B number should be reported separately.

If your items of domestic or foreign origin are valued less than $2,500 separately, those items do not require an AES filing and the low value exemption citation, NOEEI 30.37(a), can be used. However, when either the domestic and/or foreign component of the shipment is valued over $2,500 an AES filing is required. Report ‘D’ for domestic and ‘F’ for items that are foreign.

For additional regulatory clarification or assistance on this or other regulatory issues, contact Regulations at 1-800-549-0595 Opt. 3.

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Trade Deficit Decreases in October

by Joe

Decreases in both exports and imports led to the Nation’s international trade deficit in goods and services decreasing to $43.5 billion in October from $44.2 billion (revised) in September. Exports decreased $1.5 billion to $179.2 billion in October and imports decreased $2.2 billion to $222.6 billion.

The decrease in imports was primarily due to decreases in imports of crude oil (down $1.5 billion) and passenger cars (down $0.7 billion). Imports from China rose $1.4 billion in October to a record $37.8 billion, eclipsing the previous record of $37.4 billion set two months ago. Exports to China reached their highest level so far in 2011, at $9.7 billion. The record for exports to China in a single month is $10.1 billion, set in December 2010.

Despite the overall decrease in exports, October saw record exports of petroleum at $10.4 billion. October’s Graph of the Month looks at the increase since January 2009 of two categories of petroleum: Fuel Oil and Other Petroleum Products (basically, petroleum products except crude oil, fuel oil, and natural gas liquids.) Since January 2009, fuel oil exports have increased 198%, from $1.692 billion to $5.042 billion in October 2011. Other Petroleum Products have grown even more, up 256%, from $1.452 billion to $5.072 billion.

Click the image below for an interactive version of the graph.

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