US Services Trends 2010

The United States (US) is once again the single most competitive global services economy and the US has the largest services surplus. This is according to the 2010 USITC Study on Services Trends in the US. 

As the world’s top exporter of services, the US accounted for $521.4 billion, or 14 %, of global cross-border commercial services exports in 2008. Other top single country exporters included the United Kingdom (7 %) and Germany (6 %) which  further confirms that the EU as a region, is the largest services exporter. Although most of the world’s top 10 services exporters in 2008 were developed countries, China and India, two of the BRIC economies, ranked as the world’s fifth- and ninth-largest services exporters respectively. Overall, the top 10 exporting countries accounted for 52 percent of global cross-border services exports in 2008 and US services exports to the Middle East and Africa accounted for only 5% of total US services exports.

The US was also the world’s largest services importer in 2008, with $367.9 billion, or 11 percent, of global commercial services imports. In that same year, Germany and the United Kingdom respectively accounted for 8 % and 6 % of such imports, while the top 10 importing countries together accounted for one-half of total global commercial services imports. China, which was the fifth-largest importer of commercial services in 2008, was the only developing country to rank among the top 10 global importers. The Middle East and Africa accounted for 8% of of US services imports reflecting a trade deficit with the US.

Overall, sales volumes of affiliates in host economies remained much larger than cross-border trade, with U.S.- owned affiliates (in foreign markets) reporting sales of $1 trillion in 2007, and foreign owned affiliates (in the US) reporting sales of $677.8 billion. This reflects the prominent outward nature of the US mode 3 services exports.

Among the world’s top 10 exporters and importers of commercial services, the US recorded the largest services trade surplus ($153.5 billion) in 2008, followed by the United Kingdom ($86.8 billion). Germany and Japan recorded the largest services trade deficits, with imports exceeding exports by $41.4 billion and $21.0 billion, respectively.

USITC draws much of the services trade data used throughout this report from the U.S. Department of Commerce (USDOC), Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).  Trade data remains an area of concern for African countries who might lack the research and data management capabilities required undertake credible analysis for services negotiations.