Order Code 98-536 C
Updated March 13, 2002
CRS Report for Congress
Received through the CRS Web
U.S. Merchandise Trade Statistics: 1948-2001
J. Michael Donnelly
Information Research Specialist
Information Research Division
Summary
U.S. trade has been increasing in volume and value since the end of World War II.
Merchandise trade statistics provide a continuous series to measure that growth in trade.
Official annual trade statistics of the U.S. Department of Commerce, provided here,
show that in 2001 both exports and imports declined, resulting in a smaller deficit than
in 2000. For the 53 years between 1948 and 2001, merchandise exports grew by 58
times, and merchandise imports grew by 163 times. During this period, the U.S.
merchandise trade balance moved from a surplus in 1948 to a deficit in 1971. The deficit
exceeded $100 billion for the first time in 1984, surpassed $200 billion in 1998 and $300
billion in 1999, and grew beyond $400 billion in 2000 and 2001. U.S. merchandise
imports exceeded $1 trillion for the first time in 1999. This report contains preliminary
data for year 2001 merchandise trade statistics, and will be updated as new information
becomes available.
Congressional Research Service ˜ The Library of Congress

---

CRS-2
Merchandise Trade Versus Trade in Goods and Services
Merchandise trade statistics are referred to as Census basis statistics, since they are
collected, compiled, and distributed by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. This is the data
reported here, and constitutes the one continuing data series using largely uniform
definitions. Merchandise trade statistics are important because they alone are the basis for
commodity and country trade information.
In January 1994, the U.S. Department of Commerce began reporting and publishing
trade data on goods and services as the benchmark monthly trade statistic, replacing
merchandise trade data. Previously, services trade estimates were compiled by the Bureau
of Economic Analysis on a balance of payments (BOP) basis. To harmonize Census
merchandise data with Bureau of Economic Analysis services data, statistics on goods and
services are reported on a balance of payments basis. This involves such changes as
deducting U.S. military sales from merchandise accounts, since they are considered
services transactions, and adding to merchandise statistics parcels mailed to foreigners by
individuals in the United States. What this means is that the goods component of trade in
goods and services is different from the goods measured in merchandise trade statistics.
Definitions in Merchandise Trade
Merchandise trade is trade in goods only, not services, and excludes capital
transfers and foreign investments. Exports are defined here as total exports; they
include both domestically-produced goods and re-exports, which constitute imports of
goods which are warehoused here, then re-exported. Imports are defined here as general
imports, which measure total arrivals of goods into the United States—imports for both
immediate consumption channels and warehouses. Balance of merchandise trade is
defined as total exports minus general imports. Dollar amounts are current U.S. dollars,
that is, official statistics with no inflation adjustment, expressed in millions.
Valuation methods define where in a trade transaction the value of a good is
measured. As goods move in international trade, they acquire more costs. An automobile
has one cost at the end of its assembly line, but a higher cost when shipping and insurance
to a local dealer or port for export are added. For this report we follow current official
U.S. government valuation practice:
! total exports are valued free alongside or FAS. FAS figures provide
valuation of exports at the port of exportation, and thus exclude charges
for loading onto the vessel, the transportation itself, insurance, unloading
and foreign transportation.
! general imports are valued on Customs valuation. Customs valuation
for imports excludes costs of international transportation and insurance,
as well as tariffs, and is therefore quite similar to FAS valuation. Customs
valuation for imports replaced FAS valuation in U.S. government
statistics in 1982.

---

CRS-3
Recent Annual Trade Trends
In the latest complete single year, 2001, U.S. exports decreased by $51 billion, or
7%, to $731 billion. Imports decreased by $76 billion, or 6%, to $1,142 billion. These
statistics resulted in the U.S. merchandise trade deficit decreasing $25 billion, or roughly
6%, to $411 billion. The 2001 merchandise trade deficit decrease from $436 billion to
$411 billion is a change to the former $100 billion a year increase during 1999 and 2000.
In the 6-year span from 1996 through 2001, exports expanded 17%, from $625
billion to $731 billion, while imports grew 44%, from $795 to $1,142 billion. This resulted
in the trade deficit more than doubling from $170 billion to $411 billion.
Where to Find Trade Statistics
The U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Foreign Trade Division
(FTD), collects and publishes official U.S. merchandise export and import statistics. FTD
is now publishing this data digitally on the Internet, and on CD-ROM, as well as in printed
format. A single CD-ROM is published monthly for U.S. Exports of Merchandise, and a
separate single CD-ROM for U.S. Imports of Merchandise. Both are organized by
Harmonized Tariff System of the United States (HTS) classification by country, then by
customs district. Also available in CD-ROM format are U.S. Imports History, Historical
5-Year Summary, and U.S. Exports History, Historical 5-Year Summary, also organized
by HTS by country, then by customs district. FTD’s recent products include USA Trade
Online, on the Internet at [http://www.usatradeonline.gov]. An annual subscription to
USA Trade Online, at $300, could tell you about, for example, golf club imports or 2
through 10 digit Harmonized Schedule import and export data. These and other FTD
products may be obtained by calling (301) 457-2311 or visiting FTD on the Internet at
[http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/www/].

---

CRS-4
Internet Sources of Data
U.S. Bureau of the Census. The Bureau provides the full text of the monthly
FT-900 plus the FT-900 Supplement and more international trade statistics plus their
Guide to Foreign Trade Statistics at the Census Bureau’s FTD Foreign Trade Home Page
[http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/www/press.html].
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. BEA now provides Internet access to the
text of both the FT-900 and the FT-900 Supplement in one convenient document at
[www.bea.doc.gov/bea/newsrel/trad1201.htm].
U.S. International Trade Administration. Office of Trade and Economic
Analysis of the International Trade Administration in the U.S. Department of Commerce
provides trade analysis in “Monthly Trade Update,” annual country data for U.S. exports
and imports in “United States Foreign Trade Highlights,” and state export data at
[http://www.ita.doc.gov/industry/otea].
STAT-USA Internet. This subscription service of the U.S. Department of
Commerce provides a portal to U.S. government business and economic data, including
the FT-900. Trade data on STAT-USA Internet [http://www.stat-usa.gov/] is in the
National Trade Data Bank, or NTDB section under the headings “International Trade
Statistics” and “Current Press Release.” The NTDB is also available in CD-ROM format
in libraries nationwide. STAT-USA Internet is available free in federal depository libraries.
Individual subscriptions are also available at [http://www.stat-usa.gov/].
Printed Sources of Data
U.S. Department of Commerce News. U.S. International Trade in Goods and
Services, report FT-900 series, is the benchmark, official monthly press release which
reports the latest month’s statistics and revises the previous month’s statistics. Statistics
in this report are on both a Census and balance of payments (BOP) basis. The December
issue provides the first estimate of annual trade totals, and now first appears in March.
Final annual revisions are normally released in the June data release of each year, which
normally appears in August. The Department of Commerce also publishes U.S.
Merchandise Trade: Monthly FT-900 Supplement. The FT-900 Supplement reports U.S.
imports of merchandise on both a customs and CIF (cost, insurance, and freight) valuation
basis. Both the FT-900 and the FT-900 Supplement are available in print by subscription
from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington,
D.C. 20402, telephone (202) 512-2303.
Economic Indicators. This is a monthly statistical magazine prepared for the
Joint Economic Committee by the Council of Economic Advisers, contains summary trade
data. The table titled “U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services,” on page 35 each
month, contains data on both a balance of payments and Census basis. Economic
Indicators is available by subscription from the U.S. Government Printing Office.
Economic Report of the President. This is published annually in February and
contains an extensive statistical appendix which provide merchandise trade statistics on
both a Census and BOP basis from 1946 to present.

---

CRS-5
Table 1. Annual Change in U.S. Merchandise Trade: Exports, Imports,
and Balance—1948-2001 Prel.
(Census basis as of February 2002; values in U.S. current millions of dollars)
U.S.
Change
Change U.S. Merch. Change
Change
U.S.
Change
Merch.
From
From
IMPORTS
From
From
Merch.
From
Year EXPORTS Previous Previous Customs Previous Previous
Trade
Previous
F.A.S.
Year
Year
Value
Year
Year
BALANCE
Year
Value
1948
12,653.1
—
—
7,123.9
—
—
5,529.2
—
1949
12,051.1
-602.0
-4.8%
6,622.3
-501.6
-7.0%
5,428.8
-100.4
1950
9,992.9
-2,058.2
-17.1%
8,852.2
2,229.9
33.7%
1,140.7
-4,288.1
1951
13,967.4
3,974.5
39.8%
10,967.3
2,115.1
23.9%
3,000.1
1,859.4
1952
13,203.0
-764.4
-5.5%
10,717.5
-249.8
-2.3%
2,485.5
-514.6
1953
12,262.4
-940.6
-7.1%
10,873.3
155.8
1.5%
1,389.1
-1,096.4
1954
12,854.3
591.9
4.8%
10,215.4
-657.9
-6.1%
2,638.9
1,249.8
1955
14,290.9
1,436.6
11.2%
11,384.4
1,169.0
11.4%
2,906.5
267.6
1956
17,333.0
3,042.1
21.3%
12,614.9
1,230.5
10.8%
4,718.1
1,811.6
1957
19,494.9
2,161.9
12.5%
12,982.3
367.4
2.9%
6,512.6
1,794.5
1958
16,367.0
-3,127.9
-16.0%
12,834.5
-147.8
-1.1%
3,532.5
-2,980.1
1959
16,406.9
39.9
0.2%
15,207.2
2,372.7
18.5%
1,199.7
-2,332.8
1960
19,626.3
3,219.4
19.6%
15,017.5
-189.7
-1.2%
4,608.8
3,409.1
1961
20,189.5
7,335.2
57.1%
14,713.9
4,498.5
44.0%
5,475.6
2,836.7
1962
20,972.6
783.1
3.9%
16,389.5
1,675.6
11.4%
4,583.1
-892.5
1963
22,427.3
1,454.7
6.9%
17,138.0
748.5
4.6%
5,289.3
706.2
1964
25,690.1
3,262.8
14.5%
18,684.4
1,546.4
9.0%
7,005.7
1,716.4
1965
26,699.4
1,009.3
3.9%
21,365.6
2,681.2
14.3%
5,333.8
-1,671.9
1966
29,379.2
2,679.8
10.0%
25,542.2
4,176.6
19.5%
3,837.0
-1,496.8
1967
30,934.4
1,555.2
5.3%
26,812.3
1,270.1
5.0%
4,122.1
285.1
1968
34,062.8
3,128.4
10.1%
33,226.3
6,414.0
23.9%
836.5
-3,285.6
1969
37,331.7
3,268.9
9.6%
36,042.8
2,816.5
8.5%
1,288.9
452.4
1970
43,176.3
5,844.6
15.7%
39,951.6
3,908.8
10.8%
3,224.7
1,935.8
1971
44,086.6
910.3
2.1%
45,562.7
5,611.1
14.0%
-1,476.1
-4,700.8
1972
49,854.0
5,767.4
13.1%
55,582.8 10,020.1
22.0%
-5,728.8
-4,252.7
1973
71,865.2 22,011.2
44.2%
69,475.7 13,892.9
25.0%
2,389.5
8,118.3
1974
99,436.9 27,571.7
38.4%
103,320.8 33,845.1
48.7%
-3,883.9
-6,273.4
1975 108,855.6
9,418.7
9.5%
99,304.7
-4,016.1
-3.9%
9,550.9
13,434.8
1976 116,794.1
7,938.5
7.3%
124,613.9 25,309.2
25.5%
-7,819.8
-17,370.7
1977 123,181.5
6,387.4
5.5%
151,534.3 26,920.4
21.6%
-28,352.8
-20,533.0
1978 145,846.9 22,665.4
18.4%
176,052.0 24,517.7
16.2%
-30,205.1
-1,852.3
1979 186,362.7 40,515.8
27.8%
210,285.1 34,233.1
19.4%
-23,922.4
6,282.7
1980 225,566.1 39,203.4
21.0%
245,261.9 34,976.8
16.6%
-19,695.8
4,226.6
1981 238,715.0 13,148.9
5.8%
260,981.9 15,720.0
6.4%
-22,266.9
-2,571.1
1982 216,441.6 -22,273.4
-9.3%
243,951.9 -17,030.0
-6.5%
-27,510.3
-5,243.4
1983 205,638.6 -10,803.0
-5.0%
258,047.8 14,095.9
5.8%
-52,409.2
-24,898.9
1984 223,975.8 18,337.2
8.9%
330,678.4 72,630.6
28.1% -106,702.6
-54,293.4

---

CRS-6
U.S.
Change
Change U.S. Merch. Change
Change
U.S.
Change
Merch.
From
From
IMPORTS
From
From
Merch.
From
Year EXPORTS Previous Previous Customs Previous Previous
Trade
Previous
F.A.S.
Year
Year
Value
Year
Year
BALANCE
Year
Value
1985 218,814.9
-5,160.9
-2.3%
336,526.4
5,848.0
1.8% -117,711.5
-11,008.9
1986 227,158.5
8,343.6
3.8%
365,437.7 28,911.3
8.6% -138,279.2
-20,567.7
1987 254,121.9 26,963.4
11.9%
406,241.0 40,803.3
11.2% -152,119.1
-13,839.9
1988 322,426.4 68,304.5
26.9%
440,952.3 34,711.3
8.5% -118,525.9
33,593.2
1989 363,811.5 41,385.1
12.8%
473,210.8 32,258.5
7.3% -109,399.3
9,126.6
1990 393,592.3 29,780.8
8.2%
495,310.5 22,099.7
4.7% -101,718.2
7,681.1
1991 421,730.0 28,137.7
7.1%
488,453.0
-6,857.5
-1.4%
-66,723.0
34,995.2
1992 448,163.6 26,433.6
6.3%
532,664.8 44,211.8
9.1%
-84,501.2
-17,778.2
1993 465,091.0 16,927.4
3.8%
580,659.0 47,994.2
9.0% -115,568.0
-31,066.8
1994 512,626.0 47,535.0
10.2%
663,255.7 82,596.7
14.2% -150,629.7
-35,061.7
1995 584,742.0 72,116.0
14.1%
743,542.7 80,287.0
12.1% -158,800.7
-8,171.0
1996 625,074.9 40,332.9
6.9%
795,289.2 51,746.5
7.0% -170,214.3
-11,413.6
1997 689,182.4 64,107.5
10.3%
869,703.9 74,414.7
9.4% -180,521.5
-10,307.2
1998 682,137.7 -7,044.7
-1.0%
911,896.1 42,192.2
4.9% -229,758.4
-49,236.9
1999 695,797.2 13,695.5
2.0% 1,024,618.2 112,722.1
12.4% -328,821.0
-99,062.6
2000 781,917.7 86,120.5
12.4% 1,218,022.0 193,403.8
18.9% -436,104.3 -107,283.3
2001a 730,897.1 -51,020.6
-6.5% 1,142,286.0 -75,736.0
-6.2% -411,388.9
24,715.4
a. Preliminary 2001 annual data provided by U.S. Department of Commerce News, FT-900 (01-12), dated February
21, 2002. Available on the Internet at [http://www.census.gov/indicator/www/ustrade.html] and
[http://www.bea.doc.gov/bea/newsrel/trad1201.htm].

---