U.S. Balance of Trade with Asia
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
U.S. Balance of Trade with Asia
U.S. Trade Balance with Japan (monthly data, not seasonally adjusted)
U.S. Trade Balance with China (monthly data, not seasonally adjusted)
For many years, the United States has been importing more from Japan and China than it exported to these countries. While the trade volume with Japan declined in recent months, the U.S. trade volume with China continued to grow, and imports grew faster than exports. Imports from China into the United States are very seasonal compared to U.S. exports to China.
| U.S. Trade Balance with Japan | Mar-01 | Mar-02 |
|---|---|---|
| Imports (billions of dollars) | 12.12 | 10.43 |
| Percent change from same month previous year | -5.38 | -13.92 |
| Exports (billions of dollars) | 5.89 | 4.73 |
| Percent change from same month previous year | -0.18 | -19.68 |
| Trade balance (billions of dollars) | -6.23 | -5.71 |
| Percent change from same month previous year | -9.81 | -8.48 |
| U.S. Trade Balance with China | Mar-01 | Mar-02 |
|---|---|---|
| Imports (billions of dollars) | 7.59 | 7.24 |
| Percent change from same month previous year | 18.22 | -4.63 |
| Exports (billions of dollars) | 1.86 | 1.61 |
| Percent change from same month previous year | 39.43 | -13.02 |
| Trade balance (billions of dollars) | -5.74 | -5.63 |
| Percent change from same month previous year | 12.67 | -1.92 |
NOTE: The current value is compared to the value from the same period in the previous year to account for seasonality.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Foreign Trade Division; May 17, 2002; available at: http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/index.html