Foreign Trade Data - Import

The Foreign Trade Data - Import contains published information on U.S. imports of merchandise. It is compiled primarily from automated data submitted through the U.S. Customs' Automated Commercial System. Data are compiled also from import entry summary forms, warehouse withdrawal forms and Foreign Trade Zone documents as required by law to be filed with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Data on imports of electricity and natural gas from Canada are obtained from Canadian sources.

Imports of merchandise include commodities of foreign origin as well as goods of domestic origin returned to the United States with no change in condition or after having been processed and/or assembled in other countries.

For statistical purposes, imports are classified by the type of transaction: 1) Merchandise entered for immediate consumption. ("duty free" merchandise and merchandise on which duty is paid on arrival).
2) Merchandise withdrawn for consumption from Customs bonded warehouses, and U.S. Foreign Trade Zones. 3) Merchandise entered into Customs bonded warehouses and U.S. Foreign Trade Zones from foreign countries. Researchers should be aware that the IMP and EXP are inputs to the LFTTD and do not contain any information that is not included in the LFTTD. If researchers propose to request the IMP and/or EXP in addition to the LFTTD, they should provide clear justification for the use of the file(s).