Question: The U.S. Census Bureau keeps statistics on U.S. imports and exports on its website. The following steps will take you to the foreign trade statistics. Use them to answer the questions below.
i. Go to the U.S. Census Bureau's website at www.census.gov
ii. Under the heading "Topics" select "Business" and then select "International Trade" under the section "Data by Sector" in the left menu bar
iii. At the top of the page, select the tab "Data"
iv. In the left menu bar, select "Country/Product Trade"
v. Under the heading "North American Industry Classification System (NAICS)-Based," select "NAICS web application"
vi. In the drop-down menu "3-digit and 6-digit NAICS by country," select the product category you are interested in, and hit "Go" vii. In the drop-down menu "Select 6-digit NAICS," select the good or service you are interested in, and hit "Go" viii. In the drop-down menus that allow you to select a month and year, select "December" and "2013," and hit "Go" ix. The right side of the table now shows the import and export statistics for the entire year 2013. For the questions below on U.S. imports, use the column for "Consumption Imports, Customs Value Basis."
a. Look up data for U.S. imports of hats and caps: in step (vi), select "(315) Apparel & Accessories" and in step (vii), select "(315220) Men's and Boys' Cut and Sew Apparel." From which country do we import the most apparel? Which of the three sources of comparative advantage (climate, factor endowments, and technology) accounts for that country's comparative advantage in apparel production?
b. Look up data for U.S. imports of grapes: in step (vi), select "(111) Agricultural Products" and in step (vii), select "(111332) Grapes." From which country do we import the most grapes? Which of the three sources of comparative advantage (climate, factor endowments, and technology) accounts for that country's comparative advantage in grape production?
c. Look up data for U.S. imports of food product machinery: in step (vi), select "(333) Machinery, Except Electrical" and in step
(vii), select "333241 Food Product Machinery." From which country do we import the most food product machinery? Which of the three sources of comparative advantage (climate, factor endowments, and technology) accounts for that country's comparative advantage in food product machinery?