[Federal Register: October 7, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 194)]
[Notices]               
[Page 53869]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr07oc98-39]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

 
Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    DOC has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for 
clearance the following proposal for collection of information under 
the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).
    Agency: Bureau of Economic Analysis.
    Title: Annual Survey of Financial Services Transactions Between 
U.S. Financial Services Providers and Unaffiliated Foreign Persons.
    Form Number(s): BE-82.
    Agency Approval Number: 0608-0063.
    Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection 
without any change in the substance or in the method of collection.
    Burden: 3,200.
    Number of Respondents: 425.
    Avg Hours Per Response: 7.5 hours.
    Needs and Uses: The Government requires data from the BE-82, Annual 
Survey of Financial Services Transactions Between U.S. Financial 
Services Providers and Unaffiliated Foreign Persons, to obtain accurate 
and up-to-date information on U.S. financial services transactions with 
unaffiliated foreign persons. It will use the data collected in 
monitoring U.S. exports and imports of financial services, analyzing 
their impact on the U.S. and foreign economies, compiling the balance 
of payments, national income and product, and input-output accounts of 
the United States, supporting U.S. international trade policy on 
financial services, assessing U.S. competitiveness in international 
trade in services, and improving the ability of U.S. businesses to 
identify and evaluate market opportunities. For example, the Uruguay 
round of multilateral trade negotiations produced an agreement, the 
General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), that will liberalize 
market access rules and promote more equal treatment of U.S. financial 
firms. More recently, additional negotiations were completed pertaining 
specifically to financial services, resulting in the World Trade 
Organization Financial Services Agreement. The BE-82 data will help 
measure gains, by individual foreign country, obtained in financial 
services under these agreements. Similar needs arise with respect to 
the North American Free Trade Agreement among the United States, 
Canada, and Mexico. Finally, the Government needs the data to help 
gauge the effects of foreign economic developments, such as the recent 
Asian financial crisis, on U.S. business interests abroad.
    Affected Public: U.S. businesses or other for-profit institutions 
engaging in international financial services transactions with 
unaffiliated foreign persons.
    Frequency: Annual.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: Title 22 U.S.C., Sections 3101-3108, as amended.
    OMB Desk Officer: Paul Bugg, (202) 395-3093.
    You may obtain copies of the above information collection proposal 
by calling or writing Linda Engelmeier, DOC Forms Clearance Officer, 
(202) 482-3272, Department of Commerce, Room 5327, 14th Street and 
Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230.
    Send comments on the proposed information collection within 30 days 
of publication of this notice to Paul Bugg, OMB Desk Officer, Room 
10201, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503.

    Dated: October 1, 1998.
Madeleine Clayton,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 98-26846 Filed 10-6-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-06-P