Yesterday, the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis released the International Trade in Goods and Services report for February 2012.  The U.S. international trade deficit decreased from $52.5 billion (revised) in January to $46.0 billion in February, as imports decreased and exports increased.  U.S. exports increased slightly from January 2012 to $181.2 billion.  Through the first two months, U.S. exports of goods and services are up 8.5 percent over the same period of 2011. 

In addition to this monthly release, Census also published its annual profile of exporting companies, bringing the data up to 2010.  While this isn’t as timely as some more frequently published data, it does provide a more detailed look at the makeup of our nation’s exporters.  The total number of identified exporters increased by six percent in 2010.  Of note, small-and-medium-sized companies continue to contribute a larger share of our exports than in the past.  In 2010, small-and-medium-sized companies accounted for almost 34 percent of total goods export value, up from nearly 33 percent in 2009.  This continues the trend of the past decade, and highlights the importance of small-and-medium-sized companies to the President’s National Export Initiative, and the U.S. economy as a whole. 

~Mark Doms, Chief Economist, U.S. Department of Commerce

April 13, 2012

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