For Economics 3901: International Trade Assignment
This guide includes:
Sources for:
Research Tips:
Trade Statistics:
Trade Data Online
Developed by Industry Canada (now Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada), the TDO database has trade data from Statistics Canada and the U.S. Census Bureau. Includes international trade statistics for Canada and its trading partners by country and product or industry. Can be searched by product (HS) Harmonized System (to 6-digit level) or by industry (NAICS) North American Industry Classification System, or browse to find the code for your product or industry.
Canadian International Merchandise Trade (CIMT) Web Application
A new version (as of Oct. 5 2021) of the Statistics Canada CIMT database providing detailed Canadian and provincial customs based export and import data using the HS Classification at the international 6-digit level. (Also includes additional 2 digits for Canadian domestic purposes.) Can be searched or browsed by commodity.
Statistics Canada Data (formerly CANSIM)
The Statistics Canada "Data" tab leads to thousands of tables including ones that used to be in the CANSIM database. Select from the filtering options on the left, e.g. Subject: "International Trade", and search by keyword. Many trade tables are based on the NAPCS code, for aggregated products and services. Has value of exports and imports by type of product and service, and price indices.
UNcomtrade (United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database)
The most comprehensive trade database available (over 1 billion records) continuously updated. Has import and export data reported by almost 200 countries, and standardized (to some degree) by the UN, from 1962 to the present. Based on HS at the 6-digit level.
Trade Policy & Regulations:
Global Affairs Canada
The main Canadian government site for trade policy. Under the heading "Trade" see "Trade and Investment Agreements" (a searchable database of over 100 agreements), and information on tariffs, sanctions, and export and import controls.
World Trade Organization (WTO)
An international organization of 164 member countries, including Canada, who have all signed WTO agreements providing the legal ground rules for international trade. Member countries must inform the WTO when trade regulations, policies or practices change. Every member country is also reviewed regularly by the WTO.
Key resources, under "Trade Topics" -- "Trade monitoring" include:
Trade Policy Reviews : Each review has a policy statement by the government under review and a report written by the WTO Secretariat, among other documents. Very detailed reports include chapters on trade policy by sector.
The WTO's Environmental Database (EDB) is a compilation of all environment-related notifications submitted by WTO member countries as well as environmental policies mentioned in their Trade Policy Reviews.
Trade Monitoring Reports : Two reports per year cover trade policy developments worldwide Select "Trade Monitoring Database" to search by country and product to see all trade measures implemented since 2008.
Other international organizations, regional trade groups, etc., also collect and make available trade-related policy information on their websites. One way to see what regional groups may be relevant for the countries you are looking at, and membership lists of countries in regional trade groups, see in Trade Data Online: "Related Sites and Information" - "Trading Partner" - "Economic Areas/Union".
Trade Research, Analysis & News:
Government sources:
The government departments, agencies and IGOs involved in trade have economists on staff who publish trade-related research and analysis. For example:
World Trade Organization
Select "Documents, Data & Resources" -- Key publications include the World Trade Statistical Review and World Trade Report; both are annual publications analyzing trends.
Global Affairs Canada, Office of the Chief Economist
Has economic analysis and research on Canada's international trade. Key annual publication: Canada's State of Trade.
Statistics Canada
Search the whole site by keyword (includes full-text search of articles; AND is default), or select "Analysis", then "Filter Results" by selecting from the menu on the left side: Subject: International Trade.
Federal Government websites can be searched by using the search engine at the official Canadian government website: canada.ca or by using Google's site search feature: e.g. oilseeds site:gc.ca OR site:canada.ca (Departmental websites are mostly converted to canada.ca; URLs of federal government agencies and other federal bodies end in gc.ca.)
Books:
Use the Library Catalogue: Novanet to find books and ebooks. (Access via Novanet Advanced Search link from the library homepage for optimal view of search options.) Change the search scope from "Everything" to "Novanet Catalogue". The MtA Library has books on individual commodities and industries, globalization, and other international trade issues and economic theories. Enter the commodity as a Subject for the most relevant results, or combine a product keyword with others (e.g. cocoa AND trade).
- Boolean operators must be in uppercase.
NOTE: books requested from Nova Scotia academic libraries are usually available within a few days.
Article Databases:
The library subscribes to many different kinds of article databases. Access these through the library website Quick Link: "A-Z List of Databases". Some databases that should be useful for this assignment include:
ABI/INFORM Collection (and ProQuest All)
ABI/INFORM includes hundreds of international scholarly business and economics journals, as well as trade journals, magazines, news sources, commodity, market, industry, and country reports, and other sources.
- limiting searches by subject is more successful than in some other databases (see thesaurus for subject terms).
- special classification codes are no longer being applied
- click on the "Browse" button to see special reports available (e.g. Commodity, and Country reports by the Economist Intelligence Unit)
- you can search ABI together with other ProQuest databases ("Databases" tab), or select ProQuest (All), to include more Canadian and international content (NOTE: If searching ProQuest(All) some search options will no longer apply.)
- contents of individual publications can be browsed or searched separately by selecting the "Publication" tab and entering the title (e.g. Globe and Mail).
Business Source Complete
An Important database for scholarly business and economics journals. Also has country, industry, & market research reports, and more.
- search features similar to ABI/INFORM
ScienceDirect
Database primarily of peer-reviewed, academic journals, including many economics journals.
- limit search fields to Abstract/Title/Keyword for most relevant results (click on "Show all fields" for this option)
- keyword searching only; no subject terms, no truncation or wildcard
- Boolean operators: AND, OR, NOT must be in uppercase
Nexis Uni
Recommended for international news coverage and business sources.
- select "Advanced Search", then "Content type". Limit search results as needed e,g. Subject: Trade, Geography, etc.
- Boolean operators: AND, OR, ANDNOT (See search tips; has some other non-standard options)
Database Searching Tips:
Search Tips for most Databases:
- limit by using the fields available (e.g. abstract, subject, etc.)
- use the database's thesaurus to find subject terms where possible (controlled vocabulary)
Keyword searching tips:
- use double quotes: " " for phrases
- use the truncation symbol: * at the end of a word root to get all possible endings (e.g. econom*)
- use the wildcard symbol: ? to replace one letter in a word (e.g. globali?ation)
- use the Boolean operator: "AND" between search terms to ensure both are included in items found ; use "OR" to broaden a search to include any of several synonyms or variations of a term (NOTE: Boolean operators must be capitalized in some databases, e.g. Novanet)
- use parentheses when a search includes two or more different Boolean operators e.g. Canada AND (import OR export)
- limit articles found by source type, as required
- articles found can be sorted by date (most recent first)
NOTE: Use Journal Finder directly (see under "Quick Links" on the library homepage) to access the full text of journal articles found through other sources. If no full text link is available, books and articles can be requested by Interlibrary loan.
Evaluating Sources:
Before using data or statistics, look for information about them: publisher, or host site, date of collection, compilation, coverage, definitions of terms, details on how the data were collected and compiled, methodologies used, etc. If basic details are not available or are inadequate, the source may not be appropriate for use. More tips on evaluating sources are on the library website under Research Help.
Citing Sources:
How to Cite Statistics Canada Products. By Statistics Canada. 2021.
Provides examples of information to include when citing statistics in various forms including data tables (with and without a DOI), graphic data, infographics, articles, and videos. Examples are presented in APA style.
More tip sheets and guides to citing sources are on the library website under Research Help.
Trade Terms, Abbreviations & Codes:
Where possible, use the definitions provided in the source you are viewing.
Dictionary of International Trade: Handbook of the Global Trade Community. By Edward Hinkelman. HF 1373 H554 2010 REF. (main floor)
Has over 4,000 economic, banking, legal and shipping terms and abbreviations used in international trade, plus 33 appendices of related information.
Dictionary of Trade Policy Terms. 5th ed. By Walter Goode, WTO.
Has over 2,000 terms and concepts used in trade negotiations.
Harmonized System Nomenclature
Tip: The easiest way to find your product's HS classification is to download the Statistics Canada Canadian Export Classification PDF and search the entire PDF using CTRL-F.
Harmonized System Nomenclature, Maintained by the World Customs Organization. (See WCO PDF version for alternative search interface.)
The Harmonized System (HS) is the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System comprised of about 5,000 commodity groups, each identified by a six digit code. It is used by more than 200 countries and economies as a basis for their Customs tariffs and for the collection of international trade statistics. Over 98 % of the merchandise in international trade is classified in terms of the HS.
Statistics Canada's Canadian Export Classification is based on the Harmonized System.
Industry Classification Systems (NAICS, SIC, etc.) By Statistics Canada.
This page links to the latest North American Industry Classification (NAICS Canada) version and several other classification systems.
Product Classifications (NAPCS, etc.) By Statistics Canada.
The North American Product Classification System, for aggregated import and export statistics of goods and services, replacing SIGs and SEGs (Summary Import & Export Groups). Less detailed, and not always compatible with the HS.
Questions? Please contact Laura Landon, Government Information & Economics Subject Librarian: llandon@mta.ca
