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 DisseminationStandards Bulletin Board Reviews of the Fund's Data Standards' Initiatives (Reviews) Special Data Dissemination Standard Site (SDDS) Introduction Metadata Data What's New Contact Us General Data Dissemination System Site (GDDS) Data Quality Reference Site (DQRS) |
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| The Data: Coverage, Periodicity, and Timeliness | ||||||||||||
| Coverage characteristics | 5.1.1 Statistical presentation Main components: Data record the monthly trade between Member States in terms of arrivals and dispatches of goods as well as the monthly trade in terms of imports and exports between Member States and non member countries. However, in publications only the term “exports” for all outward flows and “imports” for all inward flows is applied for both intra-EU trade and extra-EU trade. Extra-EU trade imports are recorded at the frontier country where the goods are placed under the customs procedures. Extra-EU trade statistics do not record exchanges involving goods in transit, placed in a customs warehouse or given temporary admission. External trade statistics cover both extra- and intra-EU trade: Extra-EU trade statistics cover the trading of goods between a Member State and a non-member country. Intra-EU trade statistics cover the trading of goods between Member States. "Goods" means all movable property including electric current. External trade Euro-Indicators are published for the Euro-zone, the European Union (EU-25 and EU-15) and for each Member State separately. The following basic information is provided by Eurostat: - reporting country, Detailed data are disseminated according to the Combined Nomenclature (HS2, HS4, HS6 and CN8 levels) for the following indicators: - trade value (in 1000 Euro), Aggregated data cover both short and long term indicators. - gross and seasonally adjusted trade value (in million Euro), Long term indicators are disseminated according to major SITC groups for the following indicators: - trade value (in billion Euro),
Adjustments are applied by the Member States to compensate the impact of exclusion thresholds exempting the information providers from statistical formalities, as well as, to take into account the late or not response of the providers. In addition, Eurostat applies seasonal adjustments to aggregated time series included in the Euro-Indicators. Metadata in SDDS format are also available on Eurostat website at: http://europa.eu.int/estatref/info/sdds/en/ext/ext_base.htm and | |||||||||||
| Periodicity | 4.1.1 Periodicity Detailed data: Monthly and annual Aggregated data: Monthly (short term indicators) and annual (long term indicators) | |||||||||||
| Timeliness | 4.1.2 Timeliness Publication deadlines: First results (including estimates) on Euro-zone and EU trade balances are published on line around 50 days after the reference month in the external trade euro-indicators news release (see “Advance dissemination of release calendar” below). Detailed data: The latest supplied detailed data (updates and revisions) are published at the date of the monthly press release. - Aggregated data: Short term indicators are updated on a monthly basis at the date of the press release. They include all data published in the euro-indicators news release. Long term indicators are updated generally once a year when complete results are available for the last reference year. | |||||||||||
| Access by the Public | ||||||||||||
| Advance dissemination of release calendar | 5.1.3 Advance release calendar The precise date of the monthly release for external trade data is disseminated on the Eurostat website. An Advance Release Calendar is also available on the Euro Area page of the DSBB. | |||||||||||
| Simultaneous release to all interested parties | 5.1.4 Simultaneous release Data are disseminated simultaneously to all interested parties through a database update and on Eurostat's website. | |||||||||||
| Integrity | ||||||||||||
| Dissemination of terms and conditions under which official statistics are produced, including those relating to the confidentiality of individually identifiable information | 0.1.1 Responsibility for collecting, processing, and disseminating statistics Eurostat Rules on statistical compilation Council Regulation (EC) N° 322/97 of 17 February 1997 on Community Statistics (OJ N° L 52/1) sets the rules for General provisions, the Community statistical program and its implementation, Principles, Dissemination, Statistical confidentiality and Final provisions. Merchandise trade Extra-EU trade legislation: Statistics relating to the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with non-member countries are based on Council Regulation N° 1172/95 (consolidated version) and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1917/2000. (consolidated version). Intra-EU trade legislation: Statistics relating to the trading of goods between Members States are based on Regulation (EC) No 638/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council, and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1982/2004 (consolidated version). 0.1.3 Confidentiality of individual reporters' data Eurostat Council Regulation (CE) No 322/97 of 17 February 1997 (OJ No L 52/1) and Council Regulation (EURATOM, EEC) no 1588/90 of 11 June 1990 on the transmission of the data subject to statistical confidentiality to the Statistical Office of the European Communities (OJ No L 151/ 1) stipulates the detailed rules used for receiving, processing and disseminating the confidential data.Merchandise trade Confidential Data The criteria determining which statistical data are considered confidential are fixed by each Member State in the light of national legislation or practice. For foreign trade statistics, Member States generally apply the principle of 'passive confidentiality', i.e. they take suitable measures at the request of importers or exporters who feel that their interests would be harmed by the dissemination of the data. Two types of data can be made confidential in connection with a Member State's trade: the CN product code and the partner country code. A Member State may decide to make all or part of a product code confidential. If a Member State wishes to conceal the destination or the source (origin) of a product, the code of the partner country is replaced by a 'secret country' code. The application of 'trading partner confidentiality' does not preclude product confidentiality. 1.2.1 Disclosure of terms and conditions for statistical collection, processing, and dissemination A complete pool of texts regarding Community legislation in the field of external trade statistics is published by Eurostat and all legal texts of the Community are accessible on Eur-Lex. | |||||||||||
| Identification of internal government access to data before release | ||||||||||||
| Identification of ministerial commentary on the occasion of statistical releases | ||||||||||||
| Provision of information about revision and advance notice of major changes in methodology | 4.3.1 Revision schedule Data are revised frequently according to national needs and practices. They become final from six months up to possibly three years after the reference period (depending on the Member State). Revision policy Early versions of data sent to Eurostat by Member States are inevitably subject to revision mainly due to late response. Eurostat makes the revisions available in its monthly updates as soon as they were transmitted by the Member States. 1.2.4 Advance notice of major changes in methodology, source data, and statistical techniques. Major methodological changes imply changes in respective community regulations and are published in the Official Journal of the European Communities. | |||||||||||
| Quality | ||||||||||||
| Dissemination of documentation on methodology and sources used in preparing statistics | 5.2.1 Dissemination of documentation on concepts, scope, classifications, basis of recording, data sources, and statistical techniques
5.2.2 Disseminated level of detail Metadata in SDDS format are also available on Eurostat website at: http://europa.eu.int/estatref/info/sdds/en/ext/ext_base.htm and (See also summary methodology) | |||||||||||
| Dissemination of component detail, reconciliations with related data, and statistical frameworks that support statistical cross-checks and provide assurance of reasonableness | 4.2.1 Internal consistency In addition to the Euro-Indicators, detailed and aggregated data are available in the “EXTERNAL TRADE” domain. For further information, please consult the explanatory texts linked to the External Trade Short-term indicators.4.2.2 Temporal consistency For EU-15 (as aggregate and for each Member State) and Euro-zone since: - January 1995 for detailed data, For EU-25 (as aggregate and for each Member State) since January 1999 .4.2.3 Intersectoral and cross-domain consistency Methodological Differences and Sources of Error The user of external trade statistics should be aware of certain problems such as categories of goods where there are particular difficulties of data collection, data discontinuities, and specific policies on data dissemination. Discrepancies between EU and national figures There are differences between the methodology applicable to external trade statistics published by Eurostat (known as EU figures) and those published by Member States. The main sources of conceptual differences between national and EU figures are: - Different treatment of goods in transit - Certain Member States use a general trade system completely for their national figures while providing data on a special trade basis to Eurostat; - Partner country for imports: One Member State provides data for their imports to Eurostat on a country of origin basis but publishes them at national level on a country of consignment basis; - Partner country for arrivals: Certain Member States provide data to Eurostat on a country of consignment basis but they use the country of origin as criterion for their national figures. Between EU and international sources Data management problems are regarded as major contributory factors to the differences between EU figures and other international sources. These problems usually arise from the following issues: - Member States send also their trade statistics to UN, OECD or IMF. The differences that exist between data published by Eurostat and those published by Member States will therefore exist between Eurostat data and that published by these other international organisations; - The revisions issue: The national practices in revising data to correct past estimates are complex and vary between Member States as does their practice in providing revisions to Eurostat and other international organisations; - Conversion Methods: Methods to convert national data into a common currency – euro for EU figures, dollars for other sources – may be different (monthly, quarterly, annually conversion). | |||||||||||
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