94-26596. International Services Surveys: BE-80 Benchmark Survey of Financial Services Transactions Between U.S. Financial Services Providers and Unaffiliated Foreign Persons  

  • [Federal Register Volume 59, Number 207 (Thursday, October 27, 1994)]
    [Unknown Section]
    [Page 0]
    From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
    [FR Doc No: 94-26596]
    
    
    [[Page Unknown]]
    
    [Federal Register: October 27, 1994]
    
    
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    DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
    
    Bureau of Economic Analysis
    
    15 CFR Part 801
    
    [Docket No. 940797-4294]
    RIN 0691-AA24
    
     
    
    International Services Surveys: BE-80 Benchmark Survey of 
    Financial Services Transactions Between U.S. Financial Services 
    Providers and Unaffiliated Foreign Persons
    
    AGENCY: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Commerce.
    
    ACTION: Final rule.
    
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    SUMMARY: These final rules institute a new international services 
    survey, the BE-80, Benchmark Survey of Financial Services Transactions 
    Between U.S. Financial Services Providers and Unaffiliated Foreign 
    Persons, to be conducted by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), U.S. 
    Department of Commerce. The survey will, for the first time, collect 
    comprehensive information on trade in financial services between U.S. 
    financial services providers and unaffiliated foreign persons. It is 
    intended to cover the universe of such transactions by type and by 
    country. The information is needed to support trade policy initiatives, 
    including trade negotiations, on financial services and to compile the 
    U.S. balance of payments and national income and product accounts. The 
    survey will be conducted once every 5 years under the International 
    Investment and Trade in Services Survey Act and the Omnibus Trade and 
    Competitiveness Act of 1988. The first survey will cover 1994.
    
    DATES: These rules will be effective November 28, 1994.
    
    FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
    Betty L. Baker, Chief, International Investment Division (BE-50), 
    Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, 
    DC 20230; phone (202) 606-9805.
    
    SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In the July 28, 1994 Federal Register, 
    volume 59, No. 144, 59 FR 38387, BEA published a notice of proposed 
    rulemaking setting forth reporting requirements for a new survey, the 
    BE-80, Benchmark Survey of Financial Services Transactions Between U.S. 
    Financial Services Providers and Unaffiliated Foreign Persons. No 
    comments on the proposed rules were received. As a result, the final 
    rules are the same as the proposed rules.
        These final rules amend existing 15 CFR 801.9 and add new 15 CFR 
    801.11 to implement the new survey. The survey will be conducted by BEA 
    under the International Investment and Trade in Services Survey Act 
    (P.L. 94-472, 90 Stat. 2059, 22 U.S.C. 3101-3108, as amended) and the 
    Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 (P.L. 100-418, 15 U.S.C. 
    4908(b)). Section 4(a) of the International Investment and Trade in 
    Services Survey Act provides that ``The President shall, to the extent 
    he deems necessary and feasible--* * *(4) conduct * * * benchmark 
    surveys with respect to trade in services between unaffiliated United 
    States persons and foreign persons * * * '' In Section 3 of Executive 
    Order 11961, as amended by Executive Order 12518, the President 
    delegated the authority under the Act as concerns international trade 
    in services to the Secretary of Commerce, who has redelegated it to 
    BEA.
        The Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 directs that 
    ``The Secretary (of Commerce) shall ensure that * * * there is included 
    in the Data Bank information on service sector activity that is as 
    complete and timely as information on economic activity in the 
    merchandise sector. The Secretary shall undertake a new benchmark 
    survey of services transactions, including transactions with respect to 
    * * * banking services; (and) brokerage services.''
        The major purposes of the survey are to provide the information on 
    financial services needed in monitoring U.S. services trade, analyzing 
    its effects on the U.S. economy, formulating U.S. international trade 
    policy, supporting bilateral and multilateral trade negotiations, 
    compiling the U.S. balance of payments and national income and product 
    accounts, developing U.S. international price indexes for services, 
    assessing U.S. competitiveness in international trade in services, and 
    improving the ability of U.S. businesses to identify and evaluate 
    market opportunities.
        The BE-80 survey will be conducted once every 5 years, and the 
    first survey will be for 1994. The survey covers the universe of 
    financial services transactions between U.S. financial services 
    providers and unaffiliated foreign persons. Reporting is required from 
    U.S. financial services providers who have sales to or purchases from 
    unaffiliated foreign persons in all covered financial services combined 
    in excess of $1 million during the reporting year. Those financial 
    services providers meeting this criteria must supply data on the amount 
    of their sales or purchases of each covered type of service, 
    disaggregated by country. U.S. financial services providers that have 
    covered transactions of less than $1 million during the reporting year 
    are asked to provide, on a voluntary basis, estimates only of their 
    total sales or purchases of each type of financial service. The survey 
    is scheduled to be mailed to potential respondents in February 1995, 
    and completed reports are due May 31.
        It is anticipated that the information from the benchmark survey 
    will be updated in nonbenchmark years by an annual follow-on survey 
    that is more limited in scope and that will cover only a sample of the 
    companies reporting in the BE-80 survey.
    
    Executive Order 12612
    
        These final rules do not contain policies with Federalism 
    implications sufficient to warrant preparation of a Federalism 
    assessment under E.O. 12612.
    
    Executive Order 12866
    
        These final rules have been determined to be not significant for 
    purposes of E.O. 12866.
    
    Paperwork Reduction Act
    
        The collection of information requirement in these final rules has 
    been approved by OMB (OMB No. 0608-0062).
        Public reporting burden for this collection of information is 
    estimated to vary from 4 to 150 hours, with an overall average burden 
    of 7.5 hours. This includes time for reviewing the instructions, 
    searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data 
    needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. 
    Comments from the public regarding the burden estimate or any other 
    aspect of this collection of information should be addressed to: 
    Director, Bureau of Economic Analysis (BE-1), U.S. Department of 
    Commerce, Washington, DC 20503; and to the Office of Management and 
    Budget, Washington, DC 20503, Attention: Desk Officer for the 
    Department of Commerce.
    
    Regulatory Flexibility Act
    
        The General Counsel, Department of Commerce, has certified to the 
    Chief Counsel for Advocacy, Small Business Administration, under the 
    provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 605(b)), that 
    these final rules will not have a significant economic impact on a 
    substantial number of small entities. The exemption level for the 
    survey excludes most small businesses from mandatory reporting. 
    Reporting is required only if total sales or total purchases 
    transactions in financial services with unaffiliated foreign persons by 
    U.S. persons who are financial services providers, or by U.S. persons 
    whose consolidated enterprise includes a separately organized 
    subsidiary or part that is a financial services provider, exceed $1 
    million during the year. In addition, international business tends to 
    be conducted mainly by the larger companies in a given industry; in the 
    financial services industry, this is particularly true, because of the 
    high degree of consolidation occurring in that industry in the United 
    States during the past several years. In any event, small businesses 
    tend to have specialized operations and activities, so those with 
    reportable transactions will likely not have significant amounts of 
    data to report; therefore, the burden on them will be relatively small.
    
    List of Subjects in 15 CFR Part 801
    
        Economic statistics, Balance of payments, Foreign trade, Penalties, 
    Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
    
        Dated: October 11, 1994.
    Carol S. Carson,
    Director, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
    
        For the reasons set forth in the preamble, BEA amends 15 CFR Part 
    801 as follows:
    
    PART 801--[AMENDED]
    
        1. The authority citation for 15 CFR Part 801 is revised to read as 
    follows:
    
        Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301, 15 U.S.C. 4908(b), 22 U.S.C. 3101-3108, 
    and E.O. 11961 (3 CFR, 1977 Comp., p. 86) as amended by E.O. 12013 
    (3 CFR, 1977 Comp., p. 147) E.O. 12318 (3 CFR, 1981 Comp., p. 173), 
    and E.O. 12518 (3 CFR, 1985 Comp., p. 348).
    
        2. Section 801.9 is amended by revising paragraph (a) to read as 
    follows:
    
    
    Sec. 801.9  Reports required.
    
        (a) Benchmark surveys. Section 4(a)(4) of the Act (22 U.S.C. 3103) 
    provides that benchmark surveys of trade in services between U.S. and 
    unaffiliated foreign persons be conducted, but not more frequently than 
    every 5 years. General reporting requirements, exemption levels, and 
    the year of coverage of the BE-20 survey may be found in Sec. 801.10, 
    and general reporting requirements, exemption levels, and the year of 
    coverage of the BE-80 survey may be found in Sec. 801.11. More detailed 
    instructions are given on the forms themselves.
    * * * * *
        3. Section 801.11 is added to read as follows:
    
    
    Sec. 801.11  Rules and regulations for the BE-80, Benchmark Survey of 
    Financial Services Transactions Between U.S. Financial Services 
    Providers and Unaffiliated Foreign Persons.
    
        A BE-80, Benchmark Survey of Financial Services Transactions 
    Between U.S. Financial Services Providers and Unaffiliated Foreign 
    Persons, will be conducted covering companies' 1994 fiscal year and 
    every fifth year thereafter. All legal authorities, provisions, 
    definitions, and requirements contained in Sec. 801.1 through 
    Sec. 801.9 are applicable to this survey. Additional rules and 
    regulations for the BE-80 survey are given in paragraphs (a) through 
    (d) of this section. More detailed instructions are given on the report 
    form itself.
        (a) Who must report.--(1) Mandatory reporting. Reports are required 
    from each U.S. person who is a financial services provider or 
    intermediary, or whose consolidated U.S. enterprise includes a 
    separately organized subsidiary or part that is a financial services 
    provider or intermediary, and who had transactions (either sales or 
    purchases) directly with unaffiliated foreign persons in all financial 
    services combined in excess of $1,000,000 during its fiscal year 
    covered by the survey. The $1,000,000 threshold should be applied to 
    financial services transactions with unaffiliated foreign persons by 
    all parts of the consolidated U.S. enterprise combined that are 
    financial services providers or intermediaries. Because the $1,000,000 
    threshold applies separately to sales and purchases, the mandatory 
    reporting requirement may apply only to sales, only to purchases, or to 
    both sales and purchases.
        (i) The determination of whether a U.S. financial services provider 
    or intermediary is subject to this mandatory reporting requirement may 
    be judgmental, that is, based on the judgment of knowledgeable persons 
    in a company who can identify reportable transactions on a recall 
    basis, with a reasonable degree of certainty, without conducting a 
    detailed manual records search.
        (ii) Reporters who file pursuant to this mandatory reporting 
    requirement must provide data on total sales and/or purchases of each 
    of the covered types of financial services transactions and must 
    disaggregate the totals by country.
        (2) Voluntary reporting. If, during the fiscal year covered, sales 
    or purchases of financial services by a firm that is a financial 
    services provider or intermediary, or by a firm's subsidiaries or parts 
    combined that are financial services providers or intermediaries, are 
    $1,000,000 or less, the U.S. person is requested to provide an estimate 
    of the total for each type of service. Provision of this information is 
    voluntary. Because the $1,000,000 threshold applies separately to sales 
    and purchases, this voluntary reporting option may apply only to sales, 
    only to purchases, or to both sales and purchases.
        (b) BE-80 definition of financial services provider. The definition 
    of financial services provider used for this survey is analogous in 
    coverage to the finance and insurance part of Division H of the 1987 
    Standard Industrial Classification Manual (SIC major groups 60 through 
    64, and major group 67). More specifically, companies and/or 
    subsidiaries and other separable parts of companies in the following 
    industries are defined as financial services providers: Depository 
    institutions (including commercial banks and thrifts); nondepository 
    credit institutions; security and commodity futures brokers, dealers, 
    exchanges, traders, underwriters, and services providers (including 
    investment bankers and providers of securities custody services); 
    credit card companies, insurance carriers, agents, brokers and services 
    providers; investment advisors and managers; mutual funds; pension 
    funds; trusts; holding companies; investors; oil royalty traders; etc.
        (c) Covered types of services. The BE-80 survey covers the 
    following types of financial services transactions (purchases and/or 
    sales) between U.S. financial services providers and unaffiliated 
    foreign persons: Brokerage, except foreign exchange brokerage services; 
    private placement services; underwriting services; financial management 
    services; credit-related services, except credit card services; credit 
    card services; financial advisory and custody services; securities 
    lending services; foreign exchange brokerage services; and other 
    financial services.
        (d) What to file. (1) The BE-80 survey consists of Forms BE-80(A) 
    and BE-80(B). Before completing a Form BE-80(B), a consolidated U.S. 
    enterprise (including the top parent and all of its subsidiaries and 
    parts combined) must complete Form BE-80(A) to determine its reporting 
    status. If the enterprise is subject to the mandatory reporting 
    requirement, or if it is exempt from the mandatory reporting 
    requirement but chooses to report data voluntarily, either a separate 
    Form BE-80(B) may be filed for each separately organized financial 
    services subsidiary or part of the consolidated U.S. enterprise, or a 
    single BE-80(B) may be filed, representing the sum of covered 
    transactions by all financial services subsidiaries or parts of the 
    enterprise combined.
        (2) Reporters that receive the BE-80 survey from BEA, but that are 
    not reporting data in either the mandatory or voluntary section of any 
    Form BE-80(B), must return the Exemption Claim, attached to Form BE-
    80(A), to BEA.
    
    [FR Doc. 94-26596 Filed 10-26-94; 8:45 am]
    BILLING CODE 3510-EA-M
    
    
    

Document Information

Effective Date:
11/28/1994
Published:
10/27/1994
Department:
Economic Analysis Bureau
Entry Type:
Uncategorized Document
Action:
Final rule.
Document Number:
94-26596
Dates:
These rules will be effective November 28, 1994.
Pages:
0-0 (1 pages)
Docket Numbers:
Federal Register: October 27, 1994, Docket No. 940797-4294
RINs:
0691-AA24
CFR: (2)
15 CFR 801.9
15 CFR 801.11