Analyzing how markets work is a primary function of most marketing departments in top international companies. While consumer information is widely available from multiple sources, it is much harder to understand B2B international business environments and how companies interact with trading partners around the world. The best source for analyzing an international business environment is Trade Data.

While high level statistics, periodically released by the U.S. government, can provide some insights, the current economic situation requires both in-depth micro and macro analysis. U.S. Customs trade data allows users to fully understand the micro side, while an advanced trade data tool that utilizes U.S. Census trade data covers the macro part. So how are companies analyzing their markets with both U.S. trade data sets?

Calculating Market Shares on the Supply Side
To apply market share estimates, two numbers are needed. The first is how big the market is; U.S. Census data can be used to see the total values and weights of product categories that have been imported or exported. The second is how different players in the market are trading, which on the import side, comes from U.S. Customs data in the form of individual shipments.

Source Pricing Diagnostics
Product pricing is a key component of any market analysis and can be found by diving deep into how much product costs rise and fall over time. Below is an example of this in graphical form:


Product Market Profiles
Using trade data to create profiles of products gives executives and managers a solid understanding of both where imports and exports come from and go to, and also which ports are being used and the volumes being shipped. U.S. Census and U.S. Customs trade data also provides a comprehensive view of a market from high level statistics for the last several quarters, to the companies involved in the movement of goods.

Export Opportunity Analysis
U.S. Census trade data is the primary and only complete source of United States export trade data. Utilizing it shows users what markets are being underserved by U.S. suppliers and where there are potential areas of growth. While users cannot identify the companies exporting or receiving these products, a clearer picture of how exports are performing can be gleaned.

Transportation Trade Lane Analysis
Service providers, whose customers are importers and exporters, see trade data as a vital asset for their companies. Not only do they rely on it to understand trade lane trends, but also to discover where individual markets are growing. By analyzing their market effectively, resource planning is easier because forecasts are more accurate and bets are placed on only the best opportunities. Knowing what are the growth products, trade lanes, and selling markets of the future means beating competitors in a hypercompetitive industry.

Zepol's products allow you to do both detailed and aggregate analysis on markets, drawing connections that are far beyond the capabilities of simple data analysis. By using the advanced tools that Zepol provides, our customers are taking their trade intelligence to the next level. Read our case studies to find out how.

There are many events happening in the international trade arena in the coming months. With a wide variety of topics, covering issues from importing/exporting basics to supply chain security, it is important to stay up-to-date on the latest topics. I wanted to try to bring some of the most relevant to the attention of the trade community and have listed several calendars and sites with regularly scheduled events.

• Sourcing Innovation (http://blog.sourcinginnovation.com) – Supply chain roundtables and seminars
• AAEI (www.aaei.org) – Trade webinars, seminars, and conferences
• Foreign Trade Association of Southern California (www.ftasc.org) – Trade events in Southern California
• Midwest Global Trade Association (www.mgta.org) – Trade seminars and classes in the Twin Cities
• FITA (www.fita.org) – Trade events and shows around the country
• NEXCO (www.nexco.org) – International trade events

Zepol's CEO and President, Paul Rasmussen, will also be participating in a panel discussion on "Importer Identity Theft" on July 14th in Long Beach, CA. This event is being conducted by the Foreign Trade Association and will delve into one of the hottest topics in importing today. Not only does importer identity theft impact your bottom line, but it is becoming an important enforcement area for law enforcement agencies in the United States.

For more information about this event or questions about what it will cover, check out our events page here. We are happy to answer any questions that you have about how Zepol is helping companies proactively protect themselves from this crime. In addition, please comment on this blog to understand how Zepol is ensuring the security of U.S. Customs trade data.

The U.S. Census Bureau released their Merchandise Trade data numbers on June 10th, 2009. The Merchandise Trade deficit increased from $33.3 billion in March to $38.1 billion in April. The continuation of the economic slide will continue to worry both policy makers and businesses, but it is worth noting that the decrease in exports and imports has softened over the last several months.

Below is an in-depth breakdown of the U.S. Census Merchandise Trade data released today. This month we have highlighted 5 interesting items that we found while looking at April's data, here are the hightlights:

1. Decrease in Imports was driven by Air and Other transportation types
2. Exports to Iran grew over 500% in the last year
3. Top container ports are suffering
4. Oil Imports are down over 53% from last April
5. Corn Exports are stable by weight, but value has decreased from 2008

Click here for Zepol’s U.S. Census Merchandise Trade Data Update for April 2009

Over the weekend, Zepol completed the data for May in our U.S. Customs trade data tool, TradeIQ. May’s results show that imports are slightly down when compared to last month (down 1.4%). While this decrease in container traffic seems minor, it is far below the typical increase in trade of 4.4% from April to May seen the last 5 years. In addition, container traffic is off 18.9% compared to May 2008. These numbers continue to show the weakness of imports in the U.S. Trade economy.

Below is a table showing the port regions of the world where shipments originated:
The trade economy makes up about 15% of the overall economy of the United States, but it is an important barometer for the entire economy. Because trade, especially imports, is a direct reflection of consumer demand and the confidence of manufacturers and retailers, a full recovery of the U.S. economy seems to be far off. These numbers continue to show lack of confidence amongst consumers, both businesses and households, in purchasing the products that importers transport to the United States. One part of this industry that is suffering is the trade facilitation side of importing; transportation companies, customs brokers, and ports continue to see difficult times ahead. In particular, more west coast ports than east coast ports see lower shipment levels when compared to last year.

Below are the top 10 ports in the United States by shipment count:
Zepol's U.S. Customs trade data is taken from Bills of Lading entered into the Automated Manifest System. The information represents the number of House manifests entered by importers of waterborne containerized goods. This indicator is the earliest data available for the previous month’s trade activity.