Monthly & Annual Wholesale Trade

Census.gov › Business & Industry › Wholesale › Monthly & Annual › Definitions

Definitions

• Agents and Brokers - Persons or organizations that act as a representative for others in negotiating contracts, purchases, or sales. Agents and brokers typically earn a commission or fee for their services and do not take possession of, or title to, any goods.
• Annual Wholesale Trade Survey - A mandatory annual survey which collects sales and inventory data from the major components of wholesale trade: Agents and Brokers, Distributors, Manufacturer's Sales Branches and Offices (see "MSBOs"), Importers and Exporters.
• AWTS - See 'Annual Wholesale Trade Survey'
• Bonded Warehouses - Warehouses that are authorized by the United States Customs for storage or manufacturing of goods on which payment of duties is deferred until the goods are removed into Customs Territory. These goods are not subject to duties if reshipped to foreign points.
• Confidentiality - Title 13 of the United States Code authorizes the Census Bureau to conduct censuses and surveys. Section 9 of the same Title requires that any information collected from the public under the authority of Title 13 be maintained as confidential. Section 214 of Title 13 and Sections 3559 and 3571 of Title 18 of the United States Code provide for the imposition of penalties of up to five years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines for wrongful disclosure of confidential census information. In accordance with Title 13, no estimates are published that would disclose the operations of an individual firm. The Census Bureau’s internal Disclosure Review Board sets the confidentiality rules for all data releases. A checklist approach is used to ensure that all potential risks to the confidentiality of the data are considered and addressed.
• Calendar Month Reporter - A firm that closes their books on the last day of each month, or on the same date each month (e.g., the 28th).
• Data Month - The month for which data are being requested.
• Disclosure - In accordance with federal law governing Census reports, publication of any data which would disclose the operations of an individual establishment or business organization must be withheld from publication.
• Distributor - A wholesaler that buys and owns (takes title to) products prior to reselling them to its customers.
• Drop Ship - When a manufacturer drops a shipment off at a customer's site, although a wholesaler makes the sale.
• E-Commerce - The sale of goods and services where the buyer places an order, or the price and terms of the sale are negotiated over an Electronic Data Interchange, the Internet, or any other online system (extranet, e-mail, instant messaging). Payment may or may not be made online.
• EDI - See 'Electronic Data Interchange'
• EIN - See 'Employer Identification Number'
• Electronic Data Interchange - The exchange of documents in standardized electronic form between organizations in an automated manner directly from a computer application in one organization to an application in another.
• Employer Identification Number - A nine-digit number used by the Internal Revenue Service for any legal entity that is required to file a federal tax return.
• Establishment - A single physical location where business is conducted, or where services are performed.
• Firm - A business organization or entity consisting of one or more domestic establishment locations under common ownership or control.
• Foreign Trade Zones - Enclosed areas, operated as public utilities, under control of United States Customs with facilities for handling, storing, manipulating, manufacturing, and exhibiting goods. The merchandise may be exported, destroyed, or sent into Customs Territory from the zone in the original package or otherwise. It is subject to Customs duties if sent into Customs Territory, but not if reshipped to foreign points.
• Imports - Commodities of foreign origin or domestically produced goods that are returned to the United States with no change in condition or after having been processed and/or assembled in other countries.
• Imputation - The process used to tabulate sales, receipts, and inventories data for non-response cases.
• Inventories - The value, at cost, of merchandise on hand and available for sale at the end of the reporting period.
• Inventories-to-Sales Ratio - A ratio derived from dividing the dollar value of inventories by the dollar value of sales. No adjustment is made in these ratios for the markup in sales which may vary from trade to trade.
• KB - See 'Kind of Business'
• Kind of Business - The principal kind of business being conducted at an establishment.
• Manufacturers - Establishments in the manufacturing sector are often described as plants, factories, or mills, and characteristically use power-driven machines and material-handling equipment. Manufacturing establishments may process materials, or may contract with other establishments to process their materials for them. Both types of establishments are included in manufacturing.
• Manufacturers' Sales Branches and Offices - Establishments maintained by manufacturing, refining, or mining enterprises apart from their plants or mines for the purpose of marketing their products. Sales branches will typically carry inventories, while sales offices typically do not.
• MSBOs - See 'Manufacturers' Sales Branches and Offices'
• MWTS - See 'Monthly Wholesale Trade Survey'
• Monthly Wholesale Trade Survey - A voluntary monthly survey which collects sales and inventories data for distributors.
• Multiunit Firms - Firms with two or more establishments.
• Non-Merchant Wholesalers - Wholesalers that are defined as Agents and Brokers.
• Previous Month - The month that precedes the data month.
• Privacy Act - A 1974 Federal Act that protects the privacy of personal information that the government has on file. The act places restrictions on the collection, use, maintenance, and release of information about individuals.
• Sample - All firms selected for a specific survey.
• Title 13 - Title 13 is the legal authority for the Census Bureau's programs. The Census Bureau's authority is founded on the United States constitution and Title 13. The data collected by the Census Bureau provide for the foundation on which our democratic system of government is based and are the leading source of quality data about the nation's economy and people. To fulfill its mission, the Census Bureau must collect quality data and distribute it in a way that preserves usefulness while protecting privacy and confidentiality.
• Title 26 - Title 26 Internal Revenue Code provides for the conditions under which the Internal Revenue Service may disclose Federal Tax Returns and Return Information (FTI) to other agencies. Specifically, 26, U.S.C. 6103 (j) (1) provides for the disclosure of FTI to the Census Bureau for statistical purposes in the structuring of censuses and national economic accounts, as well as for conducting related statistical activities authorized by law.
• Trade Area - The broad band of business groupings - retail trade, wholesale trade, and service industries.
• Weight - The weight indicates the approximate number of firms in the survey's universe represented by the selected firm. For example, an EIN selected with a weight of 21.000 represents itself and 20 similar businesses (in terms of KB and size) in the survey's universe.
• Wholesaler - A business that sells to retailers, contrators, or other types of businesses (including farms), but not to the general public (or at least not in any significant amount).