GOODS (CENSUS BASIS)

The Census basis goods data 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.

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.

Revision policy for goods on a Census basis:  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 chained dollar) and unadjusted export,
import, and trade balance figures, as well as the end-use totals for the prior month.  SITC and
country detail data are not revised monthly.  The timing adjustment shown in Exhibit 14 is the
difference between monthly data as originally reported and as recompiled.  Quarterly revisions
are made to the real chained-dollar series.  In the last month of each quarter, the current and
previous quarters are revised to incorporate the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ monthly revisions
to price indexes, which are used to produce the real chained-dollar series and to align Census
data with data published by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis in the National Income and
Product Accounts.  Annual revisions for the months are made in June to reflect corrections
received subsequent to the monthly revisions.  These revisions are reflected in totals, end-use,
SITC, and country summary data.  The monthly end-use, commodity, and country and area data
presented in Exhibits 6-18 in this release are on a Census basis.

U.S./CANADA DATA EXCHANGE AND SUBSTITUTION

The 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. 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 2012, these
   shipments totaled $170.7 million.  U.S. export coverage also excludes U.S. postal shipments
   to Canada.  For April 2012, these shipments totaled $25.4 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 2012 accounted for 2.4 percent of the
   value of U.S. exports to Canada.

3. Reexports - Unlike Canadian imports, which are based on country of origin, U.S. exports include
   reexports of foreign goods.  Therefore, the aggregate U.S. export figure is slightly larger
   than the Canadian import figure.  For April 2012, reexports to Canada were $3,835.0 million.

4. Exchange Rate - Average monthly exchange rates are applied to convert the published data to
   U.S. currency.  For April 2012, the average exchange rate was 0.9928 Canadian dollars per
   U.S. dollar. 

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

Canadian Estimates

Effective with January 2001 statistics, the current month data for exports to Canada contain an
estimate for late arrivals and corrections.  The following month, this estimate is replaced, in
the press release tables 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.

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 on the internet at www.census.gov/foreign-trade/aip/index.html#infopapers 
or from the Foreign Trade Division, U.S. Census Bureau.

AREA GROUPINGS (See Exhibits 14 and 14A)

North America - Canada, Mexico.

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, 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,
Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain.

Pacific Rim - Australia, Brunei, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, 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.

OPEC - Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United
Arab Emirates, Venezuela.

Africa - Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, British Indian Ocean Territories, Burkina Faso,
Burundi,Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo (Brazzaville),
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 Trading-Day Variations

Goods are initially classified under the Harmonized System, which describes and measures the
characteristics of goods traded.  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 (Exhibit 6).  These data are provided to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis,
from the U.S. Census Bureau, for use in the Balance of Payments and the National Income and
Product Accounts.

The seasonal adjustment procedure is based on a model that estimates the monthly movements as
percentages above or below the general level of each end-use commodity series (unlike other
methods that redistribute the actual series values over the calendar year).  Because of the
extremely variable movements of the data series for aircraft, users studying data trends may
wish to analyze aircraft separately from other trade.

Adjustments for Price Change

Data adjusted for seasonal variation on a chained-dollar basis (2005 base year) are presented
in Exhibits 10 and 11.  This adjustment for price change is done using the Fisher chain-weighted
methodology.  The deflators are primarily based upon the monthly price indexes published by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics using techniques developed for the National Income and Product
Accounts by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

SITC Data

Goods data appearing in Exhibit 15 are classified in terms of the Standard International Trade
Classification (SITC) Revision 3.  Agricultural goods consist of non-marine food products and
other products of agriculture which have not passed through complex processes of manufacture,
such as raw hides and skins, fats and oils, and wine.  A few goods, such as essential oils,
starches, casein, and albumin, considered to be agricultural by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture, have been excluded from agricultural goods and are included in manufactured goods
where they are classified in the SITC.

Manufactured goods conform to the SITC sections that include chemicals and related products;
manufactured goods classified chiefly by material; machinery and transport equipment;
miscellaneous manufactured articles; and goods and transactions not classified elsewhere.

Reexports are foreign merchandise entering the country as imports, and at the time of exportation
are in substantially the same condition as when imported.  Reexports, included in overall export
totals, appear as separate line items in Exhibit 15.

Advanced Technology Products (ATP)

About 500 of some 22,000 commodity 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 which appears in
Exhibits 16 and 16A.  This product- and commodity-based measure of advanced technology differs
from broader NAICS industry-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)

Goods on a Census basis are adjusted by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) to a balance
of payments 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 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 a standard table of the U.S. international
transactions accounts, Table 2. U.S. Trade in Goods.  See the BEA Web site at
www.bea.gov/iTable/index_ita.cfm or 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.

   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.

   Low-value transactions - This addition is made to phase in a revised Census Bureau methodology
   for low-value goods for statistics prior to 2010.  The revised Census methodology was implemented
   for goods on a Census basis beginning with statistics for 2010.

   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, and valuation
   of software exports at market value.

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.

   Imports by U.S. military agencies - This adjustment reflects the net amount of two separate
   adjustments.  BEA first deducts goods (petroleum and non-petroleum) identified in the Census
   data as imports by U.S. military agencies.  BEA then adds primary source data for purchases
   of petroleum abroad by U.S. military agencies, which are reported to BEA by the U.S. Department
   of Defense.  Non-petroleum imports are included, along with imports of services by U.S. military
   agencies, in the services category direct defense expenditures.

   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.

   Low-value transactions - This addition is made to phase in a revised Census Bureau methodology
   for low-value goods for statistics prior to 2010.  The revised Census methodology was implemented
   for goods on a Census basis beginning with statistics for 2010.

   Other adjustments to imports include:

   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, and valuation of software
   imports at market value.

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.  Services are seasonally adjusted when statistically
significant seasonal patterns are present.  No monthly country or area detail is available due
to the lack of adequate source data.

Services are shown in seven broad categories.  The types of services for exports and imports are
the same for six of the categories.  For the seventh, the export category is transfers under U.S.
military sales contracts and the import category is direct defense expenditures.  The following
is a brief description of the types of services included in each category:

   Travel - Purchases of services and goods by U.S. travelers abroad and by foreign visitors to
   the United States.  A traveler is defined as a person who stays for a period of less than 1
   year in a country of which the person is not a resident.  Includes cruise fares and
   expenditures for food, lodging, recreation, gifts, and other items incidental to a foreign
   visit.

   Passenger fares - Fares paid by residents of one country to transportation carriers of other
   countries.  Receipts consist of fares received by U.S. carriers from foreign residents for
   travel between the United States and foreign countries and between two foreign points.
   Payments consist of fares paid by U.S. residents to foreign carriers for travel between the
   United States and foreign countries.  Excludes cruise fares, which are included in travel.

   Other transportation - Transactions include freight charges for the transportation of goods
   to and from the United States, operating expenses that transportation companies incur in
   foreign ports, postal services, and payments for vessel charter and aircraft leases with crew.
   Excludes air and ocean carriers’ fuel purchases in foreign ports, which are included in exports
   and imports of goods on a balance of payments (BOP) basis.

   Royalties and license fees - Transactions for the rights to use, the rights to reproduce or
   distribute, and the outright sale of intellectual property such as patents, techniques,
   processes, formulas, designs, know-how, trademarks, copyrights, franchises, and manufacturing
   rights.  The term "royalties" generally refers to payments for the use of copyrights or
   trademarks; the term "license fees" generally refers to payments for the use of patents or
   industrial processes.  Includes fees for the rights to distribute film and television recordings.
   Includes transactions with both affiliated (related parties) and unaffiliated foreign residents.

   Other private services - Transactions consist of education services; financial services
   (includes fees and commissions and excludes investment income); insurance services;
   telecommunications services (includes transmission services and value-added services);
   business, professional, and technical services (includes advertising services; computer and
   data processing services; database and other information services; research, development,
   and testing services; management, consulting, and public relations services; legal services;
   construction services; architectural and engineering services; mining services; industrial
   engineering services; installation, maintenance, and repair of equipment; and medical services);
   and other services.  Includes transactions with both affiliated (related parties) and
   unaffiliated foreign residents.

   Transfers under U.S. military sales contracts (Exports only) - Transactions include exports
   of services, such as training services and repair services, provided by U.S. government
   military agencies through grants and the U.S. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program.  Includes
   exports of goods that are commingled in the source data and cannot be separately identified.
   Excludes exports of goods under the FMS program, which are included in exports of goods on a
   BOP basis.

   Direct defense expenditures (Imports only) - Transactions include expenditures by U.S. military
   agencies abroad, including expenditures by U.S. personnel, payments of wages to foreign residents,
   construction expenditures, payments for foreign contractual services, and procurement of foreign
   goods.  Excludes petroleum purchases abroad, which are included in imports of goods on a BOP
   basis.

   U.S. government miscellaneous services - Transactions of U.S. government nonmilitary agencies
   with foreign residents.  Most of these transactions involve the provision of services to, or
   purchases of services from, foreigners.  Some goods transactions are also included.

Revision policy for goods on a balance of payments basis and for services: 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.  The releases
in March, June, September, and December contain revised estimates for the previous six months.
The release in March also contains revisions for all months of the previous year in order to
align the seasonally adjusted monthly data with annual totals.  The release in June also contains
annual revisions, which reflect newly available and revised source data, changes in definitions
and classifications, and changes in estimating methodologies.

U.S. INTERNATIONAL TRANSACTIONS ACCOUNTS

Quarterly and annual estimates of goods on a balance of payments basis and of services are included
in the U.S. international transactions accounts, which are published 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 international transactions accounts is scheduled
for June 14, 2012.  The Survey of Current Business is available online at
www.bea.gov/scb/index.htm or from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing
Office, Washington, D.C. 20402.

MONTHLY RELEASE SCHEDULE

Month    Date        Day

Jan      03-09-12    Friday
Feb      04-12-12    Thursday
Mar      05-10-12    Thursday
Apr      06-08-12    Friday
May      07-11-12    Wednesday
Jun      08-09-12    Thursday
Jul      09-11-12    Tuesday
Aug      10-11-12    Thursday
Sep      11-08-12    Thursday
Oct      12-11-12    Tuesday

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

Additional data and information on goods can be obtained from: Foreign Trade Division, U.S. Census
Bureau, Washington, D.C.  20233

Additional data and information on services can be obtained from: Balance of Payments Division,
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Washington, D.C.  20230

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