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U.S. Trade

Introduction | By Country | By Commodity | U.S. | Historical | Surveys | Classifications

US Census Bureau | National Bureau of Economic Research

US Census Bureau

The Foreign Trade Division of the US Census Bureau produces a broad range of statistics designed to meet the needs of a variety of users. Some statistics are freely available at the Foreign Trade Division website. The Division also makes more comprehensive trade statistics available in print and microform series and in an electronic database.

USA Trade Online (Internet)
Years / Currency: 1992- , to within the last three months
Trade classification: HS at 2-10-digits
What it offers: Value and quantity of commodities exported and imported by the US and its trading partners. Commodities are expressed at a very detailed breakdown. Data are very current. As of February 2006, includes port-level import and export data from 1993 to date.
Access: Dewey Library, on site access only. Ask library staff for help with logon. MIT ID not required.

Guide to Foreign Trade Statistics (Print, Internet)
Years: 1967-
What it offers: The Guide to Foreign Trade Statistics is an aid to locating statistical series from among the many published by the Foreign Trade Division. Use the Guide to identify a desired series number, then use the series search option in Barton, the MIT Libraries' catalog, to locate the item in the Libraries' collection. The Guide is helpful for tracking data published prior to 1992.
Access: HF105.A25 | 1967-1971, 1975, 1979, 1983, 1991-1992, Dewey Reference; current edition online.

Historical Statistics of the United States : Colonial Times to 1970 (Print, CD-ROM)
Years: 1790-1970
Trade classification: None; uses general product groupings
What it offers: Historical data on annual imports and exports, expressed in aggregate values. See Series U187-352 (Foreign Commerce)
Access: HA202.A385 | Dewey Reference; CD-ROM HA214.H57 1997 | Dewey Reserve & Rotch Circulation

National Bureau of Economic Research

Several sets of US trade data produced for research projects by economists affiliated with the NBER are available for downloading from the NBER web site. These include Robert Feenstra's file of US trade data converted to the Standard Industrial Classification at 4-digits (1972-basis) for the periods 1958-1994 and 1972-1994.

Access: http://www.nber.org/data/