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 chain-weighted 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 chain-weighted dollar series.  In the last
month of each quarter, the current and previous quarter are revised to incorporate the Bureau
of Labor Statistics' monthly revisions to price indexes, which are used to produce the
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 February 2011,
   these shipments totaled $150.2 million.  U.S. export coverage also excludes U.S. postal
   shipments to Canada.  For February 2011, these shipments totaled $19.2 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 February 2011 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 February 2011, reexports to Canada were $3,409.3 million.

4. Exchange Rate -- Average monthly exchange rates are applied to convert the published data to U.S.
   currency.  For February 2011, the average exchange rate was 0.9876 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 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, Azerbijan, 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, 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, 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, Sudan, Swaziland,
Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Western Sahara, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Adjustments for Seasonal and Working-Day Variations

Goods are initially classified under the Harmonized System (HS), 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 working-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.

BALANCE OF PAYMENTS (BOP) BASIS

Goods on a Census basis are adjusted by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA)
to goods on a balance of payments basis to align the data with the concepts and
definitions used to prepare the international and national economic accounts.  The
adjustments, which are applied separately to exports and imports, are necessary to
supplement coverage of the Census basis data, to eliminate duplication of transactions
recorded elsewhere in the international accounts, and to value transactions according
to a standard definition.  The adjustments, which include both additions to and
deductions from goods on a Census basis, are presented in this release as "Net Adjustments."
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 /international/bp_web
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 - Beginning with statistics for 1999,
   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 (FMS) program.  BEA then adds primary source data for these exports,
   which are reported to BEA by the U.S. Department of Defense.  For statistics prior
   to 1999, this adjustment reflects the deduction of goods exported under the FMS
   program because these exports are included, along with exports of services under
   the FMS program, in the services category "Transfers under U.S. military sales
   contracts."

   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 customs territory.

   Goods procured in U.S. ports by foreign carriers - Beginning with statistics for
   1999, this addition is made for foreign air and ocean carriers' fuel purchases in
   U.S. ports.  For statistics prior to 1999, these transactions are included in the
   services category "Other transportation."

   Low-value transactions - This addition to statistics for 2007-2009 is made to
   phase in a revised Census methodology for low-value goods.  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), private gift parcels, developed
   motion picture film, and military grant-aid.  Additions for sales of fish caught
   in U.S. territorial waters, exports of electricity to Mexico, and vessels and oil
   rigs for which ownership changes.

The import adjustments include:

   Gold imports, nonmonetary - This addition is made for gold sold by foreign official
   agencies to private U.S. 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 - Beginning with statistics for
   1999, this addition is made for U.S. air and ocean carriers' fuel purchases in
   foreign ports.  For statistics prior to 1999, these transactions are included
   in the services category "Other transportation."

   Imports by U.S. military agencies - Beginning with statistics for 1999, 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."
   For statistics prior to 1999, this adjustment reflects the deduction of goods
   imported by U.S. military agencies because these 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 to statistics for 2007-2009 is made to
   phase in a revised Census methodology for low-value goods.  The revised Census
   methodology was implemented for goods on a Census basis beginning with statistics
   for 2010.

   Other adjustments made 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 they 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 seven 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 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.

   Other transportation - Beginning with statistics for 1999, includes charges for
   the transportation of goods by ocean, air, waterway, pipeline, and rail carriers
   to and from the United States.  Includes freight charges, operating expenses that
   transportation companies incur in foreign ports (excluding air and ocean carriers'
   fuel purchases in foreign ports, which are included in exports and imports of
   goods), and payments for vessel charter and aircraft rentals with crew.  For
   statistics prior to 1999, also includes air and ocean carriers' fuel purchases in
   foreign ports.

   Royalties and license fees - Transactions that involve intangible assets and
   proprietary rights 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,
   and the term "license fees" generally refers to payments for the use of patents
   or industrial processes.  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
   film and tape rentals).  Includes transactions with both affiliated
   (related parties) and unaffiliated foreign residents.

   Transfers under U.S. military sales contracts (Exports only) - Beginning with
   statistics for 1999, includes 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; also 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.  For statistics prior to 1999, also includes exports of goods under
   the FMS program because they are commingled in the source data and cannot be
   separately identified.

   Direct defense expenditures (Imports only) - Beginning with statistics for 1999,
   includes 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
   (excluding petroleum purchases abroad, which are included in imports of goods).
   For statistics prior to 1999, also includes petroleum purchases abroad by U.S.
   military agencies.

   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; transfers of some goods 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 contains annual revisions,
which reflect updated 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 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 16, 2011.  The Survey 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      03-10-11    Thursday
Feb      04-12-11    Tuesday
Mar      05-11-11    Wednesday
Apr      06-09-11    Thursday
May      07-12-11    Tuesday
Jun      08-11-11    Thursday
Jul      09-08-11    Thursday
Aug      10-13-11    Thursday
Sep      11-10-11    Thursday
Oct      12-09-11    Friday

ELECTRONIC AVAILABILITY

The FT-900 and supplement are available on the following:

INTERNET The U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services reports are available at:
www.census.gov/ft900 or www.bea.gov/newsreleases/international/trade/tradnewsrelease.htm.

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

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

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