Publication

This paper examines the differences in the trade data from the US and China in two ways. It compares the trade figures at the two digit level using the Harmonized System to discern any patterns in the discrepancies between the US and Chinese data. The author then reviews the existing literature on the technical and non-technical sources of the trade data discrepancies, including an October 2009 joint China-US report on statistical discrepancies in merchandise trade data. The literature reveals that the main sources of the discrepancies are differences in the list value of shipments when they leave China and when they enter the US, and differing attributions of origin and destination of Chinese exports.