Annual indicators of business entities

Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia

Structural business statistics unit

Biljana Brajovic

Head of Structural business statistics unit

5 Milana Rakića, Belgrade

biljana.brajovic@stat.gov.rs 

(+381) 11 2412 922/ 338 ext

Not available.

Structural business statistics (SBS) describes the structure, conduct and performance of economic activities, down to the most detailed activity level (several hundred economic sectors). SBS covers all activities of the business economy with the exception of agricultural activities, public administration and (largely) non-market services such as education and health. Main characteristics (variables) of the SBS data category:

• Business demographic variables (e.g. Number of active enterprises)
• "Output related" variables (e.g. Net turnover, Value added)
• "Input related" variables: labour input (e.g. Number of employees and self-employed persons, Hours worked by employees); goods and services input (e.g. Purchases of goods and services); capital input (e.g. Gross investments).

The National classification of Activities - CA (2010) that is available on the website of the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia:  

https://stat.gov.rs/media/2269/zakon_o_klasifikaciji_delatnosti.pdf

This classification completely corresponds to the Statistical Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community (NACE Rev.2).

Nomenclature of Statistical Territorial Units (NSTU).

Starting reference year 2021 onwards SBS covers the economic activities of market producers within the NACE Rev. 2 Sections B to N, P to R and Divisions S95 and S96. Until 2007 the SBS coverage was limited to Sections C to K of NACE Rev.1.1 and from the reference year 2008 to 2020 data was available for Sections B to N and Division S95 of NACE Rev.2.

The survey includes business entities that, pursuant to the Classification of Activities, are classified into the following sections:

А    Agriculture, forestry and fishing

В    Mining and quarrying

C    Manufacturing

D    Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply

Е    Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities

F    Construction

G   Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles

H   Transportation and storage

I     Accommodation and food service activities

J     Information and communication

L    Real estate activities

М   Professional, scientific and technical activities

N    Administrative and support service activities

P     Education

Q    Human health and social work activities

R    Arts, entertainment and recreation

S95  Repair of computers and personal and household goods

S96  Other personal service activities

Items required in thе questionnaire SBS-01 have to be available in accounting, human resources and other records of enterprises. These are:

• income – revenues from sales, income from sub-contracting, donations, breakdown of income by products;
• costs – breakdown of costs for industrial and non-industrial services and costs of materials; 
• employment– annual average number of employees and self-employed persons;
• current and capital transfers– inward and outward, by recipient;
• regional data– breakdown of the total turnover, employees and self-employed persons, gross salaries and wages, depreciations and fixed assets of the enterprise by classes of the Classification of Activities (2010) and municipalities.

From the reference year 2017 for certain number of enterprises have been asked detailed data on the structure of income and costs, by CPA products or group of products. The following data are collected:

• Revenues from sales of products, stocks of finished products and work in progress;
• Revenues from sales of merchandise, trade margin rate in % or price difference, stocks of merchandise;
• Revenues from sales of products, stocks of finished products and work in progress, in construction activities;
• Revenues from sales of industrial and non-industrial services (specially for ICT and other business services);
• Costs and stocks of materials;
• Costs of industrial and non-industrial services.

Based on the results of the SBS-01 survey and data from annual financial statement, indicators defined by the EBS Regulation are produced. The most important indicators are:

 Number of enterprises includes the total number of business units which were active at least up to the reference period, according to the data from the Statistical Business Register.

Turnover comprises the invoiced values during the reference periods, which correspond to the values of market sale of goods and services to third parties. The turnover includes all invoiced taxes and duties (except VAT and similar deductible taxes), as well as charges passed on to the customer (transport, packaging, etc.). Excluded are reductions in prices, rebates and discounts, the value of returned merchandise, as well as subsidies, financial, extraordinary and other income.

Output value refers to the amount of goods and services actually produced during the reference period. It is measured by the value of the realised turnover, including the capitalised production and other operating income (excluding subsidies), which is adjusted by the changes in stocks of finished goods, work in progress, minus the value of purchases of goods and services for resale.

Value added is the gross income from operating activities, after adjusting for subsidies and indirect taxes. The calculation of the value added includes the value of production and subsidies, minus taxes on products and production, as well as the value of intermediate consumption which covers the cost of materials, cost of industrial and non-industrial services and part of other personnel cost.

Gross operating surplus is the operating surplus accruing from an enterprise’s activity, after production input has been remunerated. It can be calculated as the difference between the value added at factor costs and personnel costs. The enterprise may pay out debts, pay taxes or finance investments from the gross operating surplus. Financial and extraordinary income is excluded.

Personnel costs refer to all remuneration, in cash or in kind, payable regularly and temporarily by the employer to employees in return for work done by the latter in the reference period. They also include taxes and employees’ social security contributions payable by the employer, as well as other remunerations payable to employees, such as severance payments, gratuities, bonuses, family allowances, transport, overtime, nigh work, etc.

Gross wages and salaries refer to total remunerations, in cash or in kind, payable regularly or temporarily by the employer to employees (counted on the payroll) in return for work done in the reference period. Gross wages and salaries include taxes and social contributions payable by the employees, as well as other remunerations payable to employees, as severance payment, gratuities, bonuses, family allowances, transport, overtime, night work, etc.

Number of employees and self-employed persons refers to all persons in the enterprise, including working proprietors, partners and unpaid family workers, voluntary workers, as well as persons working outside the enterprise but counted on its payroll (sales representatives, maintenance workers, delivery, etc.).

Number of employees refers to persons who have a work contract with an employer for definite or indefinite time and are paid for their work. It includes temporary absenteeism (sick leave, paid leave, etc.), part-time workers, seasonal and temporary workers, home workers under an agreement with the employer, apprentices, as well as working proprietors and family workers on payroll of the enterprise. It excludes workers from temporary employment agencies, long absenteeism and voluntary workers.

Value added per person employed (labour productivity), according to the methodology applied in EU countries, this is the main indicator for the measure of labour productivity. This indicator shows the volume of the value added per person employed. It is calculated by dividing the value added in an activity by the number of persons employed in this activity.

Wage-adjusted labour productivity. In measuring productivity, where the number of persons employed is taken to be the input, the problem is that full-time and part-time workers, as well as temporary absent workers are treated as one employee. This is particularly obvious in activities with a high share of part-time workers. Consequently, such productivity is adjusted by personnel costs. The wage-adjusted productivity is expressed in percentages and calculated by dividing the value of productivity by the average personnel costs.

Average personnel costs are calculated by dividing personnel costs in an activity by the number of employees in that activity.

Profitability indicates the share of the gross operating surplus in the total turnover in an activity, i.e. to what degree each dinar of revenues from sale participates in the gross operating surplus. Higher share means better enterprise’s performance and better earning capacity.

Number of persons employed per enterprise, as the indicator of size, measures the average size of enterprises by activities.

Turnover per person employed indicates the enterprise’s sales capacity in a selected CA activity. It is calculated by dividing the total turnover in an activity by the number of persons employed in that activity.

Statistical and reporting unit is an economically active enterprise or market-oriented other legal unit (business entities) that have submitted the annual financial report for the previous year. From the reference year 2021 a part of unincorporated enterprises (who provide annual financial reports) are included. 

The principal statistical unit is the business entity i.e. enterprise. Given that the enterprise may perform one or more activities, in one or more sites, the local unit is also considered statistical unit. 

In SBR (Statistical Business Registers), a Legal unit is a starting point for the creation of the statistical unit Enterprise and currently all Enterprises consist of single legal unit (complex Enterprises have not yet been developed). Enterprise characteristics maintained by the SBR (principal activity, activity status, secondary economic activities, etc.) are gathered from the statistical sources.

In SBS survey tailored questionnaires for a few the most important complex enterprises was made in order to apply a new definition of enterprise.

The SBS survey covers active enterprises engaged in the production and sale of goods and services, as well as the part of other legal entities that produce and render market-oriented services, which is established by a practical criterion saying that their income from selling goods and services should exceed 50% of their total operating income. The target population consists of economically active statistical enterprises that are, according to their principal activity, classified in sections B to N, P to R and divisions S95 and S96.  From the reference year 2021 entrepreneurs (unincorporated enterprises) who provide annual financial reports are included in the survey.

Results are calculated by activities of CA, for the Republic of Serbia and statistical territorial units Srbija– sever and Srbija – jug (NSTJ1) and regions (NSTJ2).

(Remark: Starting from 1999 the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia has not at disposal and may not provide available certain data relative to AP Kosovo and Metohia and therefore these data are not included in the coverage for the Republic of Serbia (total).

From the reference year 2007 to 2023.

From the reference year 2021, there have been methodological changes in the Annual Structural Business Survey, which must be taken into account when comparing with the data until 2021.

The changes refer to the extension of the reporting unit coverage, which, in addition to enterprises and part of other legal units, also includes a part of entrepreneurs who provide an annual financial report.

In addition, from the reference year 2021, with the entry into force of the new European regulations related to business statistics, the coverage of activities has been extended in the survey by including the sections CA P, Q and R, as well as divisions CA 95 and 96 from section S.

Not applicable

• Number of enterprises is expressed in units.
• Monetary data are expressed in millions of RSD, VAT excluded.
• Employment variables are expressed in units.
• Per head values are expressed in thousands of RSD per head. 

SBS data refer to the annual results of businesses, year 2023.

SBS data refer to the calendar year that corresponds to the fiscal year.

For a minor number of variables reference period is multi annual (two, three or five years).

Structural Business Statistics is based on the following legal acts:

National legislation:

• Official Statistics Law
• Resolution on the Programme of official statistics
• Regulation on the Plan of official statistics for the current year
• Low on Classification of activities

*The above documents are available at SORS website:  https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/o-nama/dokumenti

EU legislation (acquis communautaire):

Starting with reference year 2021 two new regulations currently form the legal basis of SBS:

• Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 repealing 10 legal acts in the field of business statistics (EBS Regulation), and
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1197 laying down technical specifications and arrangements (general implementing act) pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/2152

Data are regularely transmitted to Eurostat. There is no data exchange with other international institutions.

Data confidentiality is stipulated by following documents: 

• Official Statistics Law(Official Gazette of RS, number 104/2009), Articles 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, and 49).

https://www.stat.gov.rs/media/2322/zakon_o_statisticie.pdf

• Rulebook on statistical data protection in the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia

 https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/o-nama/dokumenti

• Guidelines on measures of data and information protection in the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia

https://www.stat.gov.rs/media/2322/zakon_o_statisticie.pdf

Until the reference year 2021 confidentiality treatment of SBS data was done using software programmes and procedures made by SORS which were based on the logical checks defined and recommended by Eurostat as well as on the rules applied in Tau Argus.

From the reference year 2021 confidentiality data treatment (primary and secondary) has been made in Tau Argus. For primary confidentiality it was applied small counts rule – the cell is confidential if less than 3 units contribute to the total of the cell as well as dominance rule – the cell is confidential if one company is in a dominant position in the market i.e. it is share in total net turnover is up to 85%.

Conditions were applied and if this data is confidential, all other variables on the same level of aggregation were considered as confidential.

When primary confidentiality was done, it was applied secondary confidentiality to prevent the recalculation of a confidential cell.

Calendar of releases is available at SORS website on the 1st day of December every year for the forthcoming year. https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/calendar

All SORS releases are launched at 12.00.

Any divergence from the defined time schedule are announced in advance and explained in the Calendar. 

Calendar of releases is available at SORS website:

https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/calendar

The data obtained through statistical surveys are released:

- at the internet presentation https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/

- in the database https://data.stat.gov.rs/?caller=SDDB&languageCode=en-US

- in statistical releases and publications https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/publikacije

The results of official statistics are available at the same time to all users on impartial basis; any privileged access by external users before their release is not allowed. 

Annual

Not available

Statistical Yearbook

https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/publikacije/publication/?p=17536&tip=2

Data from theme Structural Business Statistics, subtheme Annual Structural Business Statistics, are available on SORS statistical database:

https://data.stat.gov.rs/?caller=SDDB&languageCode=en-US

On request, the access to anonymized microdata is ensured to scientific and research institutions.

The request can be placed by email at stat@stat.gov.rs, or by regular mail addressed at 

5 Milana Rakića St, Belgrade.

For more information, please see https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/korisnicka-podrska/micropodaci

Data have been transmitted to Eurostat from the reference year 2016 in the required technical format.

Methodological explanations are available in Statistical Yearbook, on SORS web site

https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/publikacije/publication/?p=17536&tip=2

https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/oblasti/strukturne-poslovne-statistike

Not available

The SORS quality management system is relied on the Serbian official statistics mission and vision, as well as on the European Statistics Code of Practice – CoP and the Total Quality Management – TQM principles, which together make the common quality framework of the European Statistical System (ESS).

For more information, see the documents at https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/o-nama/sistem-upravljanja-kvalitetom

Results from the Annual Structural Business Survey are produced in line with EU methodological requirements and standards, combining data from statistical survey SBS-01 and administrative data sources (annual financial reports).

Data are compared with data from the previous period as well as with data from the other statistical domains. The level of reliability and accuracy is high. Before data publishing detailed quality control of data is done.

Release of data is in line with Calendar of releases and data are available to all the users.

Combining multiple sources and data collection methods is in line with international recommendations, standards and practise. Data are internationally consistent because they follow EU practise as well as relevant international concepts, definitions and classifications.

Beside data released in regular publications in SORS, special data processing is done at the request of the user.

Users on statistical data on structural business statistics are found in all areas of economic and social life. These are natural persons, business entities, state administration bodies and units of local self-government, academic and scientific-research institutions, Eurostat and other domestic and international users.

Internal users are:

• Statistical Business Register (updated with feedback information from SBS);
• Inward FATS (Foreign Affiliates Statistics) - generated from SBS results;
• national accounts - SBS data are used as input for annual national accounts and for creating an input-output tables;
• STS (Short-term business statistics) - Industry statistics (value added and value of output for weighting and structure defining, as well as for updating the survey frame);
• STS (Short-term business statistics) - Construction statistics – turnover and value added for updating the survey frame.

On biennial basis (once in two years), by the means of web interview, implemented is the User Satisfaction Survey.

The survey results are available at SORS website: https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/o-nama/sistem-upravljanja-kvalitetom

The SBS-01 survey includes all economically active enterprises engaged in the production and sale of products and services, as well as other legal units that produce and provide services for the market. From the reference year 2021 unincorporated enterprises (entrepreneurs) who provide annual financial reports are included in the survey. The survey covers majority of the variables required by Eurostat regulations and guidelines.

Given that the response rate for the Structural Business Statistics survey for 2023 was 87,7% as well as the usage of administrative data sources in the case of non-response, the overall accuracy is very high.

Possible errors from inputs for SBS survey are:

• Statistical Business Register data source errors (coverage, activities, turnover, number of employees quality);
• Annual financial reports errors (quality of accounting data).
• Tax Office data (quality of data from different tax returns).
• Annual report on gross investments in fixed assets (quality of statistical data source)
• Statistical survey related to employment (quality of statistical data source).

In the case of unit non-response, imputation or estimation is made from administrative data sources.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

The data are published on the website of the Statisical Office of the Republic of Serbia 15 months after the reference period.
 Preliminary data are transmitted to Eurostat in the required technical format 10 months after the reference period, and complete final data 18 months after the reference period.

All data is published in accordance with the announced Calendar of Release

https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/calendar

The data are transmitted to Eurostat in the required deadlines and technical format.

The same concept of calculation of results is applied in the territory of the whole Republic of Serbia.
SORS applies a methodology that is in line with international standards in the area of structural business statistics, which ensures good comparability with other countries.

First reference year available (calendar year) - 2008 onwards. The data is comparable and available for all years, taking into account that the value data is given at current prices.

Calendar year(s) of break in time series - 2013, 2020, 2023

Reasons for the breaks - classification changes, unit coverage changes

Length of comparable time series (from calendar year to calendar year) - 2008-2012, 2013-2022, 2023-2025

From the reference year 2021, there have been methodological changes in the Annual Structural Business Survey, which must be taken into account when comparing with the data until 2021.

The changes refer to the extension of the reporting units coverage, which, in addition to enterprises and part of other legal units, also includes a part of entrepreneurs who provide an annual financial report.

In addition, from the reference year 2021, with the entry into force of the new European regulations related to business statistics, the coverage of activities has been extended in the survey by including the sections CA P, Q and R, as well as divisions CA 95 and 96 from section S.

Data from the annual structural business statistics is compared with data from the other statistical domains, such as:

• Quarterly structural business statistics on operating income and costs (Turnover, Value of output);
• Business Register data (Number of enterprises, Turnover and Number of persons employed);
• Turnover in Business services is completely consistent with total turnover, 
• SBS and corresponding National accounts data (SBS data are used as input for annual national accounts and for creating an input-output tables);
• Comparison of SBS data with the results from the Annual Survey on Industrial Production.
• Data for the reference year 2021 in Structural business statistics and Business demography (number of active enterprises, number of employees) are coherent, in line with recommendation in EBS regulation.

Data for different aggregates inside SBS are completely consistent.

Considering that for majority of units in the SBS frame the input data are taken from existing administrative and statistical sources, costs of SBS data production as well as the additional burden on the reporting units are minimized as much as possible.

No revision policy for SBS.

The general SORS revision policy is available at https://www.stat.gov.rs/en-US/o-nama/dokumenti

Methodology and preliminary data compilation process is identical to the one for final data production. That means, the same methodology and sources are used in both cases. Due to the longer available period, for final data more control and checks of data are carried out, including the checking with units, which improves the final data quality.

Published data are considered final, unless otherwise stated. 
Significant methodological changes are announced and users can be informed about them on the SORS website.

Reporting method of data collection based on the SBS-01 questionnaire (web entry) is applied in the survey. In addition, data from administrative sources (annual financial reports, Tax Office data) are also used. The survey is exhaustive.
Data sources for structural business statistics are:

• SBS-01 statistical survey for large and medium-sized enterprises (with 50 or more persons employed), as well as for business entities with less than 50 employees which according to the financial reports for the previous year, are large or medium, or of greater importance for the certain activity;
• administrative data sources, mainly annual financial reports, as well as Tax office data, in addition to the survey on the field; data is used for the other business units and part of unincorporated enterprises who provide annual financial reports (defined by the coverage of units) and for imputations in the case of unit or item non-response;
• Central Register of Compulsory Social Insurance, for data related to employment;
• Tax Office data, for data related to employment
• Statistical Business Register;
• results from regular annual statistical survey on gross investments in fixed assets (sample survey).
• results from regular statistical survey on employment.

Annual data collection

The survey is carried out as mandatory, prescribed by the Annual Plan of Statistical Surveys adopted by the Government of the Republic of Serbia.

Reporting units transmit the data by entering them through a web questionnaire (no paper). Also tailored questionnaires for a few the most important complex enterprises was made in order to apply a new definition of enterprise (defined by EU legal acts). Data entry and checking is done in the regional statistical units of the SORS, responsible for collecting data for its territory, and the Administration of the City of Belgrade, Department of Statistics.

Apart from submitting data via a web questionnaire, reporting units can send completed questionnaires by e-mail. It is usual practice to contact the reporting unit by telephone or e-mail, for the purpose of providing expert assistance and consultations when filling in the questionnaire, due to its scope and complexity. Sometimes the data is collected by telephone.

In order to increase the response rate, reporting units are recontacted by telephone or e-mail. In case of unit non-response, imputations or estimations are made based on data from administrative and other available sources.

Data quality control is carried out within data entry through a web application, in which the criteria of logical and calculation control are implemented. This way wrong data or warnings are marked in the application, suggesting that the reporting unit should check and correct such data.

The data are then transmitted to IST, a software application created in  SORS, which is used to control, process and tabulate data. In addition to the data from the current year (at the reporting unit level), the IST also contains relevant data from the previous year, as well as data from administrative sources. Based on this data set, data control is performed as well as imputation of data in case of non-response. IT programs function on the basis of a rule for error detection, distinguishing "warning" and "very significant" errors, which indicate that data correction is necessary. In order to correct errors, consultation with reporting units is often necessary.

Corrected aggregated data is also controlled in the InputHall program made by Eurostat. Any errors or warnings that the software detects must be corrected or explained. In this way, the controlled data are transmitted to Eurostat in a defined technical format, where the quality and completeness of data sets, which are defined in the EU regulations, are assessed.

The collected data from the survey are stored in IST software application which is used to control, process and tabulate data. Also data from annual financial reports are stored in the same base. After data editing in IST and imputations in the case of non-response, the calculation of variables in the same application follows.

The results of the survey comply with European recommendations, are shown by principal activity, which implies that when the enterprise is engaged in a few activities it will impute its whole performance to its principal activity. Also, the performance is presented in absolute numbers, as the percentage structure of the results and by the enterprise size defined by the number of persons employed or operating income. Valuable (financial) items are expressed at current prices and in dinars, VAT excluded.

Calculation and definitions of SBS variables are in line with EBS Regulations. 

Not applicable

No further comments