The BDS-Goods Traders follows the BDS Methodology.

Trading Status

The goods-trading classification is defined at the firm level. A firm can be in one of four mutually exclusive categories in any given year t: exporter only, importer only, exporter and importer, non-trader. Establishments under common ownership are assigned the same goods-trading classification as the firm.

An example illustrates the assignment of goods-trading status for a multi-sector and multi-location firm. Consider a hypothetical Firm A with five establishments – A1, A2, A3, A4, A5 where A1 and A2 operate in the manufacturing sector in State 1; and A3, A4, and A5 operate in the wholesale sector in State 2. Firm A is classified as an “exporter only”. BDS-Goods Traders will also classify establishments A1 – A5 as “exporter only”. Establishments A1-A2 will be included in the “exporter only” tabulations for the manufacturing sector; establishments A3-A5 will be included in the “exporter only” tabulations for the wholesale sector. Analogously, establishments A1-A2 will be included in the “exporter only” tabulations for the division corresponding to State 1; establishments A3-A5 will be included in the “exporter only” tabulations for the division corresponding to State 2. Thus, trading status is a firm characteristic that describes the goods-trading activities of the enterprise and not individual establishments.

Questions?  Contact us at ces.bds@census.gov.