CBP's FY 2011 Mid-Year Import Trade Trends Showed Modest Growth

Import Spikes in March 2010/2011 May Indicate Return to Normal Trade Patterns

CBP states that each year, imports predictably rise March through October. While the steep decline in imports from the final quarter of FY 2008 into 2009 was caused by the economic downturn, CBP states that imports spiked in March 2010 and 2011, which may indicate a return to normal trade patterns.CBP states that considering the faltering economy, the increase in imports and duties collected are encouraging signs for the trade community. The volume and value of goods imported into the U.S. increased and traditional trade patterns resumed, indicating continued economic trade recovery for FY 2011.

Value & Duty Collections Rose, Increase in Importing Entities Slowed, Etc.

Analyzing data for mid-FY 2010 and FY 2011 compared with a ten year overview of FY 2000 - FY 2010 data, CBP has highlighted the following import trade trends for mid-FY 2011:

• Value and duty collections -- have grown overall, but collections have not grown at the same pace as import value. This may be explained by open policy on trade, trade agreements and general decline in duty rates.
• Consignees and importing entities -- have increased; however, the growth rate has slowed over the last four years.
• Import volume has grown -- but line level declarations have trended up at a higher rate than entry transactions.
• Entry volume has increased -- but line level declarations have nearly doubled, due in part to increasing use and complexity of trade agreements, special provisions, and factors requiring separate line item declarations.

Worked on Import Safety Efforts with FDA, CPSC, APHIS & Other Gov't Agencies

At the Interagency Import Safety Conference in October 2010, CBP collaborated with leaders from nine other federal agencies to protect U.S. consumers and the environment from unsafe products. The agencies signed an agreement to support, among other things, the creation of an interagency forum dedicated to import safety cooperation; information sharing across federal agencies involved in import safety, the use of risk-management strategies to streamline lawful trade, etc. Some of the agencies also signed an interagency memorandum of understanding to improve targeting and enforcement efforts at the Commercial Targeting and Analysis Center (CTAC). (See ITT's Online Archives 10102210 for summary.)

In September, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration joined CTAC. The original CTAC partnership included the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), and CBP.

Recent Import Safety Collaborations Include Kinder Eggs, Toys, HID Lights, Etc.

CBP's recent import safety collaborations include:

• Kinder Eggs. CBP, CPSC, and the Food and Drug Administration work collaboratively to ensure the safety of imported goods by examining, sampling and testing products that may present import safety hazards. The FDA issued an import alert for Kinder Eggs, a confectionery product with a toy embedded in it. The eggs violate CPSC small parts regulations with respect to choking hazards to protect children under age three. In FY2010, CBP seized nearly 25,000 Kinder Eggs. (See ITT's Online Archives 11041243 for summary.)

• Children’s Toys. In June 2011, CBP working collaboratively with CPSC seized a shipment of imported children’s toy jewelry for hazardous levels of lead. The manufacturer’s suggested retail price of the shipment was approximately $340,000. The shipment of toy jewelry coming from China was considered high risk and had been targeted by the CTAC. (See ITT's Online Archives 11071417 for summary.)

• HID conversion kits. In September 2011, CBP, working with the Department of Transportation, seized a shipment of 10,740 imported high intensity discharge (HID) conversion kits with a domestic value of approximately $570,000. CBP officers seized the shipment after determining that the equipment failed to meet various DOT requirements. Since October 2009, CBP has seized more than 400,000 HID conversion kits and components with a total combined domestic value of approximately $5 million for violating DOT regulations. A significant portion of those shipments arrived in the U.S. via the air cargo or express mail environment, shipped from numerous Southeast Asian countries. (See ITT's Online Archives 11100629 for summary.)

Statistical Highlights of Mid-FY 2011

CBP provides the following statistical highlights of mid-FY 2011:

• By the end of FY 2010, U.S. imports rose 13 percent in volume over FY 2009, exceeding the annual increase experienced in recent fiscal years and continuing the economic trade recovery.

• Import volume exceeded the volume over the same time frame in FY 2010 by almost 16 percent. Continued stability and modest growth are projected for FY 2011.

• CBP processed about $1.1 trillion of imports in the first two quarters of FY 2011, an almost 16 percent increase over the same period in FY 2010.

• Dutiable imported goods increased over the 2010 mid-year fiscal review by 34 percent. At this time in FY 2010, 29 percent of imported goods were dutiable. The remaining goods were duty free or free under tariff preference programs.

• CBP collected $17.7 billion in revenue for the U.S. Government, almost $3 billion more than the revenue collected in the same timeframe in FY 2010.

• Total mid-fiscal year 2011 duty collections exceed the amount collected over the same time frame in FY 2010 by about 20 percent.

• Mid-year entry summary increased 7 percent over FY 2010, and mid-year entry line volume increased by about 9 percent (or 5 million lines) over 2010.

• The Top Ten Tariff Chapters accounted for 70 percent of the mid-year FY 2011 import value, a 2 percent decrease from the 2010 mid-year value.

• China continues as the leading source of imports, followed by Canada, Mexico and Japan.

(See ITT's Online Archives 11020136 and 11013129 for summaries of CBP's year-end FY 2010 Import Trade Trends report.)