IO-Snap

IO-Snap is a Windows-based software application designed to facilitate the use of input-output data from U.S. national Make and Use tables. In the process of assembling the various utilities that support national and state-level input-output analysis and IO for user defined regions, we also have created a user-friendly environment that facilitates interregional comparisons of regional economic variables such as employment, compensation, and gross product.

In addition to comprehensive economic data provision, IO-Snap is a richly featured and analytical software application. Data can be edited and displayed in a variety of formats, compared and contrasted across geographical definitions at different times, and essential input-output based analyses can be implemented. Cut and paste options are enabled throughout so that users can easily transfer data to spreadsheets for further analysis, graphing, etc.

Annual IO tables from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) for years spanning 1998 through the most recent year, currently 2022, can be selected.  

Make and Use tables contain a wealth of data. Production functions, output distributions, final demand purchases and purchasing patterns, and employment and compensation by industry data by year are easily accessed and extracted for use in other applications.

The national data are drawn primarily from the U.S. BEA Annual Input-Output Accounts. The Make tables describe the production of commodities by industry and the Use tables describe the commodities used by industries in the production of their outputs, along with the Value Added components of each industry and the final demand activity demands for commodities. Further, gross product by industry data are presented by gross product component.

As an additional service, we plan to begin in 2025 providing users with the ability to add benchmark-level detail to our regional accounts for a selected sectors.

IO-Snap comes pre-installed with annual employment, compensation, and other value added data by industry for 50 individual states and Washington DC, all years. These data form the foundation for generating regional input-output accounts.

States can be combined to generate multi-state regions, such as Census Divisions, and states or multi-state regions can be used as templates for generating user-defined custom regions. Default configurations for BEA, Census, and other common regions provided.

Prior to generating the requirements tables, users can further customize the regionalization process by modifying Use table columns (including final demand distributions) and Make table rows. Consistency checks ensure compatibility between the modified tables.

The software supports viewing these variables in multiple tabs across states or for a single state at different time periods.

Enter final demand changes to generate output, employment, and income impacts assessments. Final demand shocks expressed by industry or by commodity can drive the analyses, which can be based on open or closed inverse solutions. Final demand change values can optionally be modified by regional supply-percentage adjustments and can be converted from purchaser to producer prices. Standard impacts assessment results include output, income, employment, and value-added impacts.

Create Industry by Industry, Industry by Commodity, and Commodity by Commodity direct and total requirements tables.  All tables and accounts correctly account for scrap, second-hand, and used goods production.

Requirements tables and multipliers for the U.S. and specified regions can be viewed. Output, employment, and income multipliers and their decompositions are viewable.

Modify Use table columns (including final demand distributions) and Make table rows. Consistency checks and optional automated balancing procedures ensure compatibility between the modified tables.

In addition to copy and paste functions for displayed tabular data, IO-Snap supports import and export of entire Stone-type (commodity by industry) and interindustry accounts. CGE modelers will find this feature especially useful for model calibration.

Much of the data we use come from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. We begin with the Annual Input-Output Accounts at the Summary Level. We won't pretend to do a better job than the BEA in describing their data, but instead point you to their Industry Economic Accounts Information Guide. We provide three options with respect to the government sectors. Users can choose to accept the four government sectors initial listed within the BEA summary data; aggregate to two sectors -- Federal and State & Local; or aggregate to a single Total Government sector. These options are particularly relevant at the sub-national level where less detailed data are generally less easily obtained.

Here is a list of IO-Snap sector labels:

1. Farms

2. Forestry, fishing, and related activities

3. Oil and gas extraction

4. Mining, except oil and gas

5. Support activities for mining

6. Utilities

7. Construction

8. Wood products

9. Nonmetallic mineral products

10. Primary metals

11. Fabricated metal products

12. Machinery

13. Computer and electronic products

14. Electrical equipment, appliances, and components

15. Motor vehicles, bodies and trailers, and parts

16. Other transportation equipment

17. Furniture and related products

18. Miscellaneous manufacturing

19. Food and beverage and tobacco products

20. Textile mills and textile product mills

21. Apparel and leather and allied products

22. Paper products

23. Printing and related support activities

24. Petroleum and coal products

25. Chemical products

26. Plastics and rubber products

27. Wholesale trade

28. Motor vehicle and parts dealers

29. Food and beverage stores

30. General merchandise stores

31. Other retail

32. Air transportation

33. Rail transportation

34. Water transportation

35. Truck transportation

36. Transit and ground passenger transportation

37. Pipeline transportation

38. Other transportation and support activities

39. Warehousing and storage

40. Publishing industries, except internet (includes software)

41. Motion picture and sound recording industries

42. Broadcasting and telecommunications

43. Data processing, internet publishing, and other information services

44. Federal Reserve banks, credit intermediation, and related activities

45. Securities, commodity contracts, and investments

46. Insurance carriers and related activities

47. Funds, trusts, and other financial vehicles

48. Real estate

49. Rental and leasing services and lessors of intangible assets

50. Legal services

51. Computer systems design and related services

52. Miscellaneous professional, scientific, and technical services

53. Management of companies and enterprises

54. Administrative and support services

55. Waste management and remediation services

56. Educational services

57. Ambulatory health care services

58. Hospitals

59. Nursing and residential care facilities

60. Social assistance

61. Performing arts, spectator sports, museums, and related activities

62. Amusements, gambling, and recreation industries

63. Accommodation

64. Food services and drinking places

65. Other services, except government

66. Federal general government defense

67. Total Government