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Here are detailed step-by-step instructions on how to use the Agricultural Trade Multiplier (ATM) calculator to generate open model multipliers.
Step 1—Select your commodities of interest using either the predefined ERS commodity groupings or the commodity selection tree. Note that you cannot make concurrent selections from both the predefined groupings and the selection tree.
To select from among the predefined groupings—all agricultural exports,
farm commodities, all crops, livestock, nonfarm commodities, bulk commodities,
and high-value commodities—left click the radio button to the left of
the grouping of interest. Only one group from the ERS predefined list can be
selected. If you want to start over, click the Clear Group button.
To instead select from the commodity selection tree, left click on the box
next to each commodity or commodity group. A check mark (√)
will appear next to each selection. At any time, you can left click checked
boxes to undo selections from the list, thus enabling you to tailor your analysis
to a single commodity or any combination thereof. If you want to start over,
click the Clear Tree button.
Once selections have been made from either the predefined groupings or the
tree list, click the Next button to proceed to the next step.
Step 2—Select the
type of multiplier by left clicking the radio buttons
corresponding to either the producer or port level
of the export process. The producer level includes
the activity embodied in the commodity as it leaves
the farm gate or manufacturer's door before shipping
and handling charges have been added. By definition,
both the ERS and user margins for a producer-value
multiplier are set to 100 percent for producer
and zero for both transportation and wholesale/retail
trade. You cannot select new margins for the
producer level.
If
producer-level multipliers suit your needs, select
Producer and proceed to step 3.
If you want to input your own trade margins, select
Port. Port-value
multipliers reflect the value of the commodity as it leaves the farm
gate or manufacturer's door and shipping, handling, and storage charges
between the farm or manufacturer and the port. The ATM calculator allows
you to adjust the producer, transportation, and wholesale/retail margins to
your liking. Once you select Port, the calculator will generate
a table. Input your margins in the table. The three margins
can range from 0 to 100 and must be a whole-integer value. The sum of the
three margins must equal 100. Click the Save Margins button to confirm your
margins sum to 100, save them for analysis, and proceed to step 3. If your
margins do not sum to 100, a warning box will pop up and ask you to correct
your entries.
Step 3—Click the Calculate Results button to create and display your model results table. If you selected more than 10 commodities, the table will be displayed over multiple pages. The number of pages will be noted in the blue bar at the bottom of the table. Click on a page number to display that page in the table.
All tables can be printed and/or downloaded in Microsoft Excel 
format.
You can also calculate a partially closed model (using your margins), show your margins, or start over.
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