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Figure 11 U.S. International Freight and Port Services Trade: 1990-2008

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Figure 11
U.S. International Freight and Port Services Trade: 1990-2008

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(Billions of current $)

Year Freight services Port services
1990 23 24
1991 23 24
1992 22 23
1993 23 23
1994 26 24
1995 28 25
1996 28 26
1997 29 27
1998 30 26
1999 34 27
2000 40 31
2001 37 30
2002 38 29
2003 46 30
2004 55 36
2005 60 43
2006 63 48
2007 65 53
2008 68 63

NOTE: Data cover total payments and receipts. Payments consist of money paid by domestic consumers to foreign carriers or service providers. Receipts consist of money received by domestic carriers or service providers from foreign sources.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, based on data from U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. International Transactions Accounts Data, available at www.bea.gov/international/bp_web/simple.cfm?anon=104324&table_id=22&area_id=3 as of Sept. 10, 2009.

  • Freight carriers transport international cargo between the United States and its trading partners around the world. In addition to trade in merchandise, the United States buys (imports) and sells (exports) freight services via the various transportation modes. The freight and port services sector includes several industries, including carriers, ports, terminal operators, and third-party logistics providers, such as freight forwarders and consolidators.

  • In 2008, U.S. trade in freight and port services was $131 billion. Receipts for exports were $59 billion, and payments for imports were $72 billion. Of the $131 billion, 52 percent ($68 billion) was for freight services and the remainder was for port services.