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Identifying U.S. Merchandise Traders: Integrating Customs Transactions with Business Administrative Data

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Listed:
  • Fariha Kamal
  • Wei Ouyang

Abstract

This paper describes the construction of the Longitudinal Firm Trade Transactions Database (LFTTD) enabling the identification of merchandise traders - exporters and importers - in the U.S. Census Bureau’s Business Register (BR). The LFTTD links merchandise export and import transactions from customs declaration forms to the BR beginning in 1992 through the present. We employ a combination of deterministic and probabilistic matching algorithms to assign a unique firm identifier in the BR to a merchandise export or import transaction record. On average, we match 89 percent of export and import values to a firm identifier. In 1992, we match 79 (88) percent of export (import) value; in 2017, we match 92 (96) percent of export (import) value. Trade transactions in year t are matched to years between 1976 and t+1 of the BR. On average, 94 percent of the trade value matches to a firm in year t of the BR. The LFTTD provides the most comprehensive identification of and the foundation for the analysis of goods trading firms in the U.S. economy.

Suggested Citation

  • Fariha Kamal & Wei Ouyang, 2020. "Identifying U.S. Merchandise Traders: Integrating Customs Transactions with Business Administrative Data," Working Papers 20-28, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    • Handle: RePEc:cen:wpaper:20-28
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    File URL: https://www2.census.gov/ces/wp/2020/CES-WP-20-28.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Richard Beem & Christopher Goetz & Martha Stinson & Sean Wang, 2022. "Business Dynamics Statistics for Single-Unit Firms," Working Papers 22-57, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    2. Handley, Kyle & Kamal, Fariha & Monarch, Ryan, 2024. "Supply chain adjustments to tariff shocks: Evidence from firm trade linkages in the 2018-2019 U.S. trade war," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 244(C).
    3. Basker, Emek & Kamal, Fariha, 2021. "Recall and response: Relationship adjustments to adverse information shocks," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).
    4. Melissa C. Chow & Teresa C. Fort & Christopher Goetz & Nathan Goldschlag & James Lawrence & Elisabeth Ruth Perlman & Martha Stinson & T. Kirk White, 2021. "Redesigning the Longitudinal Business Database," NBER Working Papers 28839, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • F00 - International Economics - - General - - - General
    • F10 - International Economics - - Trade - - - General
    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade

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