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Trade Information Bulletin No. 345
Supplement to Commerce Reports

Price, 10 cents.

INTRODUCTION

Trade of the United States with Latin America, comprising both exports and imports, in the calendar year 1924 amounted t $1,828,758,150, an increase of 131 per cent over that of the fiscal year 1913-14, and of nearly 5 per cent over that of the calendar year 1923. This impressive figure represented 22.3 per cent of our totă trade, a higher proportion than ever before reached by our Latin American commerce, which is a significant indication of the increasing importance of the inter-American economic relationships.

Our imports from Latin America in 1924, $1,059,184,910, were greater by 117 per cent than in 1913-14, but only 1 per cent greater than those of 1923. Our exports increased by 155 per cent over the last pre-war year and by 11 per cent over 1923, amounting to $769,573,240.

To all those interested in Latin American trade it is important to know just what is bought from and sold to each of the varieus countries and trade areas in that region. In this, the sixth annua report on trade with Latin America published by the burea this information is furnished in much greater detail than has beer done heretofore. The fact is brought out that, notwithstanding its own great agricultural production, Latin America is an importa market for the products of our farms as well as our factories. Hence its prosperity and progress are matters of interest to a great part of our population.

MAY, 1925.

JULIUS KLEIN, Director Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce.

UNITED STATES TRADE WITH LATIN AMERICA IN 1924

As a trade unit Latin America is considered as embracing not only the 20 Latin American Republics, but the European possessions and dependencies on the mainland south of the United States and in the adjacent islands, including the Bermudas. While Porto Rico and the Virgin Islands of the United States lie within this trade region, trade with them is regarded as domestic and, except where specifically indicated to the contrary, they are omitted from the tables in this report.

The following table shows the growth of our trade with Latin America over a number of years and the share taken by that region of our total foreign trade. Figures up to and including 1914 are for fiscal years ended June 30. Those for later periods are for calendar years.

TRADE OF THE UNITED STATES WITH LATIN AMERICA

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NOTE.-Figures for Porto Rico and for the Danish West Indies (now Virgin Islands of the United States) are included for years prior to 1900.

As a market for products of the United States, Latin America may be divided into two sections, the northern, or Caribbean, and the southern, or South American. In the first, or Caribbean section, we include Central America, Mexico, the West Indies, and the following countries of the north coast of South America, Colombia, Venezuela, and the Guianas; in the second, the remainder of South America. Due to its proximity to us, to frequent and rapid means of communication, and to the preponderance of our investments there, the Caribbean section purchases from us the greater part of its supply of foreign goods. In addition to business conducted through regular trade channels, ever increasing quantities of goods are being shipped there in small lots by parcel post. As will be noted from the tables

1 For a brief historical review of United States trade with Latin America and information as to the market and other characteristics of the principal countries of that region see United States Trade With Latin America in 1923, published by the Bureau as Trade Information Bulletin No. 224, April, 1924.

showing details of trade with the various countries and islands of this section, it is a particularly good market for products of American farms, taking large quantities of food products, both animal and Vegetable. In addition, it buys from us almost every commodity and article that would find sale in the average city, town, or rural community of the United States. The South American section, on the other hand, buys from us in large quantities only those articles which we make better or cheaper than do our European competitors. The following table shows the amount of trade with each of these sections and its component parts for the calendar years 1923 and 1924:

TRADE OF THE UNITED STATES WITH LATIN AMERICA, BY SECTIONS AND COUNTRIES, 1923 AND 1924

Sections and countries

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1924

$769,573,240

503,435,445

64,843,901

1,835,701

6,491,955

8,823, 9,100, 6,250,499 26,365,846 135,076, 703 254, 587, 713

21,357, 410 1,606,743 3,474, 817

5,975, 385

7,291, 083

3,822, 406

199, 779, 279

15,642, 268

3,710, 051 2,528, 97

11, 569, 738

28, 671 17,

1,565,296 801, 717 245, 807 266, 137, 795 116,997,569 4,122, 417 65, 206, 712 31,377, 819 5,537,621

19,775, 789 23,837, 124
15,077, 188
567

820,543

18, 222, 114

15,876

78, 412, 003
1,668, 495

1 Shipments to and from Porto Rico and the Virgin Islands, which are territories of the United States, are not, strictly speaking, imports and exports.

EXPORTS TO LATIN AMERICA

The following table shows our exports to each of the two trade sections in Latin America during the calendar year 1923 and the percentage taken by Latin America of our total exports of each commodity. (At this time commodity figures for 1924 are not yet available for use in this manner.) The bulk of our sales to the region

were made up of the following commodities, in the order named: Manufactures of cotton, manufactures of iron and steel, petroleum products, grains and preparations of, automobiles and parts, lumber, lard, agricultural implements, electrical machinery, chemicals, manufactures of leather, meats, coal and coke, manufactures of rubber, paper, vegetables, cooperage and shooks, steam engines, manufactures of copper and brass, and milk. Other items of importance were leaf tobacco, paints and varnishes, fish, explosives and ammunition, eggs, soap, and fruits. The total was further swelled by innumerable articles, from asbestos and chewing gum to wheelbarrows and zinc dust, including many commodities produced in Latin America, such as sugar, livestock, cottonseed oil, fruit juices, and, in fact, almost every article finding a market in the United States. One item alone of more than $3,000,000 is coffee produced in the United States (Porto Rico), for which Cuba is one of the prime markets. It will be noted that Latin America takes more than 50 per cent of our total exports of several of these commodities, including such important ones as cotton goods, leather goods, and meats.

UNITED STATES EXPORTS TO LATIN AMERICA, CALENDAR YEAR 1923

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