C.2. Customs records for estimating the value of resident/non-resident trade and related transport and insurance services
9.20. Customs records are one example of the ways in which administrative sources can be used by compilers of trade in services statistics. In general, customs declarations include the freight charges and insurance for shipments of merchandise and can be used to determine the value of trade-related transport and insurance services.
9.21. If foreign merchandise trade statistics provide both the FOB and CIF values of imports, then the values of freight costs and insurance premiums can be obtained from such statistics. However, a method is also needed to separate freight costs from insurance premiums. When both valuations are not available on a regular basis, it may be possible to obtain freight costs and insurance premiums by analysing the supporting import documentation supplied to customs. Such analysis could be achieved by means of a properly designed sample survey of the customs records. In some countries, import documentation may also provide the name or registration of the vessel carrying the imported goods. The compiler could compare that information to the lists of vessels operated by residents; if no match is found, it could be assumed that the transport service was provided by a non-resident operator.[1] If customs data can also be used to measure freight on imports, for example, by taking the difference between imports CIF and imports FOB and deducting an estimate for insurance premiums, those data could be matched with information on the vessel to determine transport services provided by vessels operated by non-residents.[2]