What Countries are Exporting More to the US — and What Commodities? (Part 2)

In Part 1 of this post we explored some of the countries and commodities where imports are rising fastest based on the most recent quarterly data in the US. In Spend Matters view, US companies and trade groups monitoring imports should keep a particularly close eye on Mexico and Germany. Increased imports from Mexico signal near-shoring efforts taking shape. Increased imports from Germany are important to note because of the weakness of the Euro and the importance of keeping the dollar as deflated as possible in relation to the Euro, lest US manufacturers face a disadvantage relative to Germany companies on the world stage.

Ironically, in currency gaming, it seems that both Germany and the US are chasing China to see who can approximate the ultimate currency cheat the most. Alas, the Politburo is playing in an entirely different league (think Yankees) when it comes to keeping its currency down to boost exports because of the tight fist the government keeps on controlling the value of the RMB. Germany and the US are in little league by comparison -- or perhaps even playing on the t-ball field.

Enough on this subject. Other data of interest to come out of Panjiva's latest Trendspotting findings include declines in US imports. In this regard, Libya led the downward charge with US imports dropping 92% thanks to the war against and ultimate overthrow of some nutball Bedouin that took place in the region during the timeframe. Other countries with declines include the Congo (ROC) dropping 48% perhaps in part due to new restrictions on conflict items (e.g., conflict minerals) being put into place against the region. Japan dropped 7%, owing in part to the tsunami and earthquake tragedy as well as a strong currency. And Egypt fell 14%, undoubtedly owing to its own civil unrest earlier this year.

In short, Panjiva's Trendspotting report provided us with a fascinating and quick look at import trends in the US. If you're curious about the topic, it takes less than a twenty seconds to download it. You can download it here.

Jason Busch