Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
RE-EXPORTS AND RE-IMPORTS
IN UN COMTRADE
2nd Meeting of the Working Party on International Trade
in Goods & Services Statistics (WPTGS)
OECD, Paris, 16-18 November 2009
Alix de SAINT VAULRY
CEPII
1
Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
How many types of trade flows?
Before COMTRADE on line
In COMTRADE on line
1) Imports
1) Imports
(including possible re-imports)
2) Exports
2) Exports
(including possible re-exports)
3) possible Re-exports
(not included in Exports)
3) possible Re-exports
(included in Exports)
4) possible Re-imports
(included in Imports)
2
Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Definitions
• In COMTRADE on line Glossary presently:
• Re-exports are exports of foreign goods in the
same state as previously imported;
they are to be included in the country exports
• Re-imports are goods imported in the same state
as previously exported;
they are to be included in the country imports
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Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
In the same state
According to the countries, different criteria.
Usually: no substantial processing,
ie (Kyoto convention):
• change of tarif heading in a specified
nomenclature, with a list of exceptions
• list of operations which confer (or not) upon the
good the origin of the processing country
• ad valorem percentage rule (threshold for the
percentage value of the materials utilized or for
the percentage of the value added)
4
Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Depending on the system of trade
Customs Procedure
General
Relaxed
Special
Strict
Special
Clearance for home use
Re-importation in the same state
Outright exportation
Free zones
Customs warehouses
M
RM
X
M & (X or RX)
M & (X or RX)
M
RM
X
-
Customs transit
Transshipment
Carriage of goods coastwise
Inward processing
Outward processing
Drawback
Processing of goods for home use
Temporary admission
M & (X or RX)
X & (M or RM)
M & (X or RX)
M
-
M
RM
X
M & (X or RX)
in the case of
industrial free zones
M & (X or RX)
X & (M or RM)
M & (X or RX)
M
-
5
Adjustment M
M
-
120
100
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
How many reporting countries?
Number of Reporting Countries
180
160
140
nM
nX
80
60
nRX
40
20
nRM
0
Source: UN COMTRADE 13/10/2009
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Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Percentage of countries
reporting re-exports and re-imports
Number of Countries Reporting Re-exports and Re-imports / resp. Exports and Imports
35%
30%
25%
nRX / nX
20%
15%
nRM / nM
10%
5%
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
0%
Source: UN COMTRADE 13/10/2009
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Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Part of RX and RM in World Trade
Re-exports/Exports and Re-imports/Imports
5.0%
4.5%
4.0%
3.5%
3.0%
RX / X
2.5%
2.0%
1.5%
1.0%
RM / M
0.5%
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
0.0%
Source: UN COMTRADE 13/10/2009
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Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Re-imports: mostly intra!
• More than 99% of RM come from... the country
itself.
• Only 9 countries have « extra » RM.
• Macao sometimes has up to 10% of its RM coming
from the rest of the world.
• Afghanistan, Armenia, Chile, Cuba, Moldavia,
Aruba, Pakistan and Uganda have no « intra » RM.
• Maximum of « extra » RM: 550 million US$ in
2005, half of which (277) for Uganda.
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Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Re-imports: mostly China!
Part of RM in World Trade
Part in World Re-imports
90%
9
80%
8
China
60%
China
50%
United Kingdom
40%
France
30%
Thailand
20%
Canada
UK
France
Ireland
Malaisia
thousandths of World Trade
World
70%
7
6
5
4
3
2
10%
1
0%
0
Source: UN COMTRADE 13/10/2009
China
Source: UN COMTRADE 13/10/2009
10
Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Re-exports: Hong Kong, USA and others
Re-exports in World Trade
35
25
Hong Kong
Hong Kong
20
USA
UAE
Canada
15
USA
United Kingdom
Bahamas
10
Australia
Malaisia
5
Source: UN COMTRADE 13/10/2009
11
2008
2006
2004
2002
2000
1998
1996
1994
1992
1990
1988
1986
1984
1982
1980
1978
1976
1974
1972
1970
1968
1966
1964
0
1962
thousandths of World Trade
30
Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Questions (1)
• Re-imports before 2000:
–
–
–
–
is there no RM in reality? would they begin in 2000?
or were they included in imports? (but no intra seen)
or RM but not counted in imports?
by all means, discontinuity in 2000
• Intra re-imports (coming from the country itself):
– problem of definition(s)?
• Missing countries:
– Singapour, Netherlands, Germany...
– do not report to UN their RM and RX
– though up to 40% of their M (X)
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Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Questions (2)
• Domestic trade:
– RX & RM: at least 3% of international trade counted twice
(if you want X from China to US, including via HK...)
– pb of mirror flows: what do the partners report?
– try to isolate domestic trade
– but at a detailed level (sectoral and geographical
breakdown),
– you can remove RM only from M (not from X)
– and RX only from X (not for M)
– so you get imbalances
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Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Questions (3)
• In COMTRADE:
– more explanations on RM, in particular why intra?
(coming from the country itself)
– retropolation for RM before 2000?
(detailed by products and partners if possible)
– a dream: exhaustive series from 1962 onwards of
domestic exports and imports detailed by reporting
country, partner and product
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Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
Further possible fields of research
•
•
•
•
•
RX of HK and USA detailed by partner and product
RM of China detailed by partner and product
Reports of partners
National statistics for HK, USA, China
and other countries (Singapour, Netherlands,
Germany...)
• Eurostat: definitions, data
• Typology of RX and RM (light processing, ...)
• depending from the system of trade (table p. 5)
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Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE
THANK YOU
FOR YOUR ATTENTION
alix.saint-vaulry@cepii.fr
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