Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 1 Alix de SAINT VAULRY CEPII R E - EXPORTS AND RE - IMPORTS IN UN C OMTRADE 2 nd Meeting of the Working Party on International Trade in Goods & Services Statistics (WPTGS) OECD, Paris, November 2009

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 2 How many types of trade flows? Before COMTRADE on line 1)Imports 2) Exports 3) possible Re-exports (not included in Exports) In COMTRADE on line 1)Imports (including possible re-imports) 2) Exports (including possible re-exports) 3) possible Re-exports (included in Exports) 4) possible Re-imports (included in Imports)

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 3 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

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 4 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)

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 5 Depending on the system of trade

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 6 How many reporting countries?

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 7 Percentage of countries reporting re-exports and re-imports

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 8 Part of RX and RM in World Trade

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 9 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.

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 10 Re-imports: mostly China!

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 11 Re-exports: Hong Kong, USA and others

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 12 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)

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 13 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

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 14 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

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 15 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)

Re-exports and re-imports in UN COMTRADE 16 THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION