Behind the Numbers U.S. Trade in the World Economy (1992) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
3. Developing a Flexible Data System for U.S. International Economic Activities
3. Developing a Flexible Data System for U.S. International Economic Activities
Pages 63-74
The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.
From page 63... ...
Until now, the absence of a strong nexus between data collection and data analysis has resulted in the production of data of diminishing analytic usefulness or data that are not fully utilized. Because the international trade environment will continue to evolve, continual interaction between data collection agencies and public and private users is essential to ensure that relevant data are collected and irrelevant data are not.
|
From page 64... ...
The huge drop in the stock market in October 1987 was attributed partly to the increasing deficit reported during that period. Also, in the late 1980s, data on foreign investment in the United States including foreigners' production of automobiles, electronic products, and other manufacturing, wholesaling, and retailing activities in the domestic economy, as well as purchases of prime real estate raised fears of foreigners' buying up the United States and of this country's losing control of its production and real estate.
|
From page 65... ...
In addition, data compiled in large sector aggregates mask major changes in particular components; the lack of detailed data on U.S. international services limits analytic uses.
|
From page 66... ...
observes that BEA's recent improvements in data on international services transactions represent a response to continued academic complaints about deficiencies of the data. In addition, Congress and the administrative agencies became aware of the data shortcomings when services trade was put on the agenda for the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade negotiations.
|
From page 67... ...
. Although we asked users to identify both currently unmet needs and anticipated future needs for foreign trade data, most of the responses concentrated on the present.
|
From page 68... ...
Such processing occurs in several ways: by extracting some data cells from a large data set; by calculating derived statistics, such as unit costs; by developing time series and performing seasonal adjustment; by converting from one classification system to another; and by converting the data from hard copy (or microfiche) to electronic format, or the reverse.
|
From page 69... ...
Indeed, there is no organized system by which users communicate their needs to data collection agencies. Loud user complaints do seem to stimulate responses, but volume and value are not necessarily highly correlated.
|
From page 70... ...
Whatever the mechanism, it must foster an ongoing interaction between data collection agencies and data users. COMMUNICATING DATA QUALITY TO USERS An important symptom of the communications failure between data users and data collectors is the absence of clear measures of uncertainty accompanying the data on international economic activities provided by the federal government.
|
From page 71... ...
Changes in the operating procedures that are costly and likely to have little effect on improving data quality would not be undertaken. Attaching standard errors or other measures of uncertainty to international economic data is not easy, in part because much of the uncertainty in the data is not due to sampling uncertainty, with which statisticians are used to dealing.
|
From page 72... ...
There are three ways in which data users can find out more about the behavior of the economy: gather more data; gather more accurate data; or determine the accuracy of the data. In part because the federal data producing agencies do not emphasize the reporting of data limitations, only the first of these ways generally has been considered.
|
From page 73... ...
Recommendation 3-3 An advisory body should be established to guide long-term developments as the international trade environment continues to evolve and transactions become increasingly complex. This advisory body should be composed of experts from industry, academia, and government; it should include research and analytic data users, data filers, and respondents to government surveys, as well as user agency officials.
|
Key Terms
This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
More
information on Chapter Skim is available.