Any company that has expanded its product lines knows that there is a great amount of research to be done before any decisions are made. It is critical to understand where a potential new product is coming from and who competitors in the market are, as well as how the product has fared over time. Collecting this information can take a significant amount of time, but Zepol’s tools, TradeIQ™ and TradeView™, can help companies find this vital data in a matter of minutes.

With a simple product search in TradeIQ™, users are able to determine a vast amount of information. Not only can you view who else is importing the product you are interested in, but you can find the shippers overseas and which countries the product is imported from. You are able to know the weight and quantity of the imported product in total, or by importer or even for a single shipment. Lastly, you can discover through which U.S. ports the product is entering the country and which shipping line brought the product to the U.S.

Most TradeIQ™ users also have access to TradeView™, and although it houses a different data set, it complements TradeIQ™’s data well. There are many options for searching for a product in TradeView™, including HTS, NAICS, SITC, End Use, and HITECH codes. For each product code or group of codes, you are able to view the total values, weights, duties, and other charges for imports to the U.S. or exports from the U.S. You can even view values broken down by country or U.S. port and for ocean, air, and land shipments. Having access to export data allows you to discover which markets are currently buying the product you are interested in from the U.S. and where there may be opportunities to sell the product in new countries.

In both tools, users are able to view trends of a product over time, from over the last year to over the last eight years. It is also easy to create graphs to visualize the data for presentations or reports.

If you have any questions regarding TradeIQ™ or TradeView™, please don’t hesitate to contact Zepol at 612-435-2191.

Zepol is pleased to announce that we’ve created a new profile reporting tool for our products, TradeIQ™ and TradeView™. This enhancement allows users to view the top Consignees, Shippers, Carriers, and Ports for TradeIQ™ searches and the top HTS Codes, Countries, and US Ports for TradeView™ searches, all in one report. Profile reports can be customized to display up to ten profiles in the order chosen, and users are able to select the number of Top items, up to four Measures, and whether the data is displayed numerically or in a Pie or Bar Chart. This enhancement is available exclusively for Enterprise subscribers.

Please view the video below for more information on this enhancement and feel free to Contact Us in you have any questions.

Zepol’s recent release of the 2010 U.S. Import Review, which analyzes 29 major industry sectors, has been a helpful tool for many in the importing, transportation, and manufacturing sectors. The report gives an overview of where the U.S. import market has been in recent years and where it is going in the future. Not too surprising, 28 of the 29 industries examined had a positive import value change over last year and many industries have reached pre-recession levels. Click here to download the complete report.

Zepol will release the 2010 U.S. Export Review in early January 2011, which analyzes the export activities of the same 29 industries from January through October of 2010. This report will shed light on how domestic producers and exporters are recovering from last year’s lull and what we can expect in the future for the export market. Additionally, the report examines US ports of departure, countries of destination, and the overall trade balance.

United States imports from Haiti have seen a significant rebound in recent months since the devastating earthquake in January. Initially, imports from the country dropped steeply in January, as much of the country’s infrastructure and roadways were severely damaged. The rebound has been quick, but turbulent. In the months of June and September, most notably, imports reached levels not seen in the last two years, with $60.7 million and $60.6 million respectively. This is a positive sign for the country as they continue to face challenges in the recovery process. 

Although imports from Haiti have risen this year, the diversity of products remains very low. With over 90% of all imports in the apparel sector, the country is heavily dependant on factory work. Other imported products from Haiti include fruits and nuts, oils, and cosmetics. The majority of shipments are coming from the capital city, Port au Prince, and entering the U.S. through the port of Miami. With U.S. imports from Haiti the highest in years, we hope this trend will continue in the upward direction as the country continues to recover.