U.S. COMMERCE TRADE REPORT OMITS FREIGHT COSTS
  The Commerce Department said on that
  insurance and freight costs for imported goods of 1.45 billion
  dlrs were included in the February trade deficit of 15.1
  billion dlrs reported on Tuesday.
      The department is required by law to wait 48 hours after
  the initial trade report to issue a second report on a "customs
  value" basis, which eliminates the freight and insurance
  charges from the cost of imports.
      Private-sector economists emphasized that the Commerce
  Department was not revising down the deficit by 1.45 billion
  dlrs but simply presenting the figures on a different basis.
      A report in the Washington Post caused a stir in the
  foreign exchanges today because it gave the impression, dealers
  said, that the underlying trade deficit for February had been
  revised downward.
      The Commerce department would like to have the law changed
  to permit it to report both sets of figures simultaneously.
      "My feeling is the second one is a better report but there's
  legislation that requires us to delay it two days," said Robert
  Ortner, Commerce undersecretary for economic affairs.
      "But this has been going on for a long time and no one pays
  any attention to the second figure."
      The 15.1 billion dlr February trade deficit compared with a
  revised January deficit of 12.3 billion dlrs.
      The law requiring a 48-hour delay in publishing the monthly
  trade figure excluding freight and insurance was passed in
  1979.
      Reportedly the feeling was the first figure, which includes
  customs, freight and insurance, allowed a better comparison
  with other countries that reported their trade balances on the
  same basis.
      The second figure, which would always be lower by deducting
  freight and insurance, presents the deficit in a more favorable
  light for the Reagan administration.
      Ortner said he would like to see the law changed to
  eliminate the 48-hour delay in reporting the two figures.
      "We're considering it," he said, "It's one of those dinosaur
  laws and I think it's time has come."
      The second figure, which would always be lower by deducting
  freight and insurance, presents the deficit in a more favorable
  light for the Reagan administration.
      Ortner said he would like to see the law changed to
  eliminate the 48-hour delay in reporting the two figures.
      "We're considering it," he said, "It's one of those dinosaur
  laws and I think its time has come."
  

