Gross Fixed Capital Formation, by technical structure

Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia

National Accounts, Prices and Agriculture Department

Svetlana Jelić

Statistician methodologist

Belgrade, Milana Rakića 5  

 svetlana.jelic@stat.gov.rs

+381 11 2412922

+381 11 2401284

Gross Fixed Capital Formation (P.51g) is measured by the total value of a producer's acquisitions, less disposals, of fixed assets during the accounting period. The acquisitions are made by resident business entities aimed at obtaining new, as well as increasing the value or replacement of the existing capacities. GFCF refers only to the assets that have come into existence as outputs from processes of production, and that are themselves used repeatedly or continuously in other processes of production over periods of time longer than one year. The fundamental point of distinction between intermediate consumption and gross fixed capital formation is whether commodities are used up during the course of a particular period or whether they yield benefits beyond that period. Furthermore, all fixed assets are covered whether they are bought in the country or abroad, acquired by barter, received as capital transfer in kind, produced and retained for own use, or obtained via financial lease.

The standard followed is the European System of Accounts 2010 (ESA 2010).

The whole economy (S1): non-financial (S.11) and financial corporations (S12), government sector (S13) and households (S.14), including non-profit institutions serving households (S15).

The national accounts compiled in the Republic of Serbia are based on the principles and definitions set up in the ESA 2010/SNA 2008. From the expenditure side, GDP can be measured as follows:

GDP        = private final consumption expenditure (P.3 in S.14+S.15)

                + government final consumption expenditure (P.3 in S.13)

                + gross fixed capital formation (P.51G)

                + changes in inventories (P.52)

                + acquisition less disposal of valuables (P.53)

                + exports (P.6)

                - imports (P.7)

National accounts are dealing with the economy (or large sub-sectors) as a whole. They combine data from a variety of base statistics, and thus they have no common sampling reference frame. The elementary building block of ESA2010 statistics is the institutional unit (ESA2010, 2.12.), "an economic entity characterised by decision-making autonomy in the exercise of its principal function".

National Accounts combine data from many source statistics. The concept of statistical population is not strictly applicable in a national accounts context.

Reference area for the compilation of the Serbian system of national accounts is the territory of the Republic of Serbia. Nevertheless, starting from 1999 the SORS has not at disposal and may not provide certain data relative to AP Kosovo and Metohija and therefore these data are not included in the coverage for the Republic of Serbia.

Time coverage (i.e., length of the historical series): the national data series of GFCF in line with ESA 2010 data transmission programme are available from 1995.

The base period concept is not applicable. The Commission Decision 98/715/EC requires previous year prices and volume estimates to be presented in chain-linked series.

RSD million

The accounting period is the calendar year.

National legislation

The Official Statistics Law („Official Gazette of the RS“, No. 104/09) specifies the legal framework for the production and dissemination of official statistics and also for the organization of the system of official statistics of the Republic of Serbia. Nevertheless, the Official Statistics Law, together with the five-year Statistical Programme over the period 2016 – 2020 and the annual implementation plans, provides the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia (SORS) with a clear and broad legal mandate to collect and access the data needed for the execution of the Statistical Programme and the Implementation Plan.

In addition, pursuant to Article 18, paragraph 2 of the Law on Official Statistics (“Official Gazette of the RS”, No 104/09) and Article 42, paragraph 1 of the Law on Government Administration (“Official Gazette of the RS” No 55/05, 71/05‐corrigendum, 101/07, 65/08 and 16/11), the Government adopts every year a regulation that defines the plan for official statistics.

EU legislation

Regulation (EU) No 549/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May 2013 on the European system of national and regional accounts in the European Union.

Not available.

The protection of secret data and documents shall be done in accordance with the Law on Data Secrecy. Confidential data from Article 3 of the Rulebook are considered official secret and cannot be published or communicated, that is, they cannot be part of aggregated data from which individual data can be identified. Individual data can be given only to the owner of those data. Only the employees of the Office authorized by decision of the Director of the Office shall have access to confidential data from administrative sources.

Also, if SORS transmits data with a confidentiality flag or an embargo date, these data are not disseminated until the confidentiality flag is lifted in a subsequent data transmission or the embargo expired.

The release dates for the statistics of national accounts are indicated in the annual Release calendar, which is updated on yearly basis. The calendar is accessible to public before the beginning of a calendar year, referring to the following year. It provides the review of all statistical releases and publications with precisely stated title, referent period and date of publishing.

Deviations from the Calendar are published and explained on the SORS website. In case it is necessary to postpone the data publishing due to unpredicted occasions (e.g. technical reasons), the new release date, with the stated explanation, is to be provided in the scope of the Calendar. 

The Release calendar is accessible to public on the SORS website before the beginning of a calendar year, referring to the following year. It provides the review of all statistical releases and publications with precisely stated title, referent period and date of publishing.

In line with the European Statistics Code of Practice statistics are disseminated respecting professional independence and in an objective, professional and transparent manner in which all users are treated equitably. The detailed arrangements are governed by the Eurostat protocol on impartial access to Eurostat data for users.

Annual.

All regular and ad hoc press releases the Serbian national accounts data can be found on the SORS web page.

The Serbian national accounts data can be found on the SORS web page.

Database on SORS and Eurostat website. 

The national accounts data are compiled on aggregated level, but there are cases where only one or jus a few large companies represent one industry (division of NACE). In these cases, providing data for that industry would mean disclosing individual data. According to the Rulebook on the method of using and providing the data produced by the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia, this type of information is regarded as individual data without an identifier (anonymised microdata). Pursuant to the Article 7 of the Rulebook: “The Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia provides individual data without identifiers (anonymised microdata) based on the requests submitted by accredited scientific research organizations (institutes, faculties, universities etc.), researchers and PhD students as well as institutions that implement special projects funded by national or international research programmes.” 

Not relevant for these statistics.

The general methodological framework is defined in the European System of Accounts (ESA 2010).

Not available.

The SORS established “Quality policy”as the general framework based on which it defines the design and implement the system of quality management, and “Quality strategy” as the framework for the SORS activities as regards the implementation of QM. Additionally, plan of implementation of quality strategy is defined. The SORS quality management system relies on the mission and vision of the Serbian official statistics, European Statistics Code of Practice – CoP, and the principles of Total Quality Management – TQM, which represent the common framework of the European Statistical System (ESS) quality standard. The model of Total Quality Management defines generally the areas of activity and criteria that must be taken into account in quality management. Accordingly, SORS has defined four areas for continuous quality improvement: (1) User orientation (2) Quality of statistical products and processes (3) Strengthening the cooperation with data providers and (4) Staff professional development and satisfaction. 

Due to their great importance for administrative purposes, national accounts are regularly made subject to international audits; for example by Eurostat, the International Monetary Fund and OECD.

Statistical Management Information System (SMIS) or compliance database is used for measuring the harmonization of statistics with EU statistical standards; especially the implementation of the methodological, as well as the statistical legislation requirements.

The national accounts are relevant as quantitative basis for everyone working with economics, ranging from the use of national accounts in the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Finance, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, the National Bank of Serbia for planning, analysing, modelling and forecasting purposes, to their use by various public organisations and public interest in the structure and development of the economy. Beisdes, the results of national accounts are also important to the identified groups of users (general public, specialized journalists, etc.). Annual accounts offer complete and consistent description of the investments of the whole economy as well as detailed investments analyses of all economic sectors.

Not available.

Completeness of the Serbian national accounts data can be observed in the context of meeting Eurostat data requirements set in the Programme of data transmission to Eurostat (Transmission programme). The providing of the national accounts data to Eurostat, in line with ESA 95, started in February 2013. Starting from October 2014, the transmission of the national accounts tables is carried out as a regular activity envisaged by ESA 2010. 

The traditional measures of accuracy would be difficult to apply to the national accounts estimates, but can be indirectly accessed through evaluation of the reliability of the released analysis of the revisions of GDP and its components.

Not relevant for these statistics.

Not relevant for these statistics.

The annual GFCF data are released within 9 months after the end of the reference year, when they are transmitted to Eurostat according to the ESA 2010 Transmission Program.

The release dates for the statistics of national accounts are indicated in the annual Release calendar, which is updated on yearly basis. The calendar is accessible to public before the beginning of a calendar year, referring to the following year. It provides the review of all statistical releases and publications with precisely stated title, referent period and date of publishing.

Deviations from the Calendar are published and explained on the SORS website. In case it is necessary to postpone the data publishing due to unpredicted occasions (e.g. technical reasons), the new release date, with the stated explanation, is to be provided in the scope of the Calendar. 

At the European and global level, there is a far-reaching comparability of the national accounts thanks to the application of the worldwide adopted guidelines on national accounting set out in the ESA 2010/SNA 2008. The ESA 2010 has been implemented from October 2014; therefrom the data transmission to Eurostat is compliant with the ESA 2010 rules.

In the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia the national data series of GFCF in line with ESA 2010 data transmission programme are available from 1995.

The data published within the scope of the national accounts (coverage of the total economic activity) often differ from the data published within the scope of the relevant specific statistics regarding similar, or seemingly the same, variables. In most cases, this is due to methodological differences and to the nature of the accounting system in which a number of various data sources are integrated to calculate the results for one variable.

However, comparisons with other statistics at a detailed level will often show differences, partly because of the differences in definitions of variables, and partly because of the calendar year delimitation for the purpose of the national accounts and the requirement as regards the total coverage of the economic activity.

Serbian national accounts are internally consistent. This is supported by the fact that the total uses and total resources are balanced at the level of individual transaction categories giving a coherent set of data for the total national economy and transactions with the rest of the world.

Not available.

National data on investments are revised according to national schedule. General Revision policy  is adopted and published as an official document. 

The published data should be regarded as final, unless otherwise stated. Corrections and revisions might occur.

National data on investments are revised according to national schedule. Revised data are available at SORS online database as soon as they become validated.

The annual national accounts revisions are performed when the need arises to introduce: methodological issues (changed concepts, definitions, classifications), changes of statistical methods, changes of data sources, upgraded coverage of reporting units and corrections of errors and corrections of original data and estimations. 

Major changes in methodology are usually announced in advance and users are informed of revisions and major changes in methodology on the SORS website.

National Accounts combine data from many source statistics.

Annual.

National Accounts combine investments data from many source statistics. Techniques of data collection vary widely, depending on the compilation approach, the source statistics available, the particular account in the system of accounts, the timeliness of data release and other factors.

Data on GFCF are checked for accuracy and completeness. Transmitted figures are screened both internally, by SORS and externally, by Eurostat through an extensive system of equations based on arithmetical constraints as well as on accounting relations.

Data on investments are compiled within SORS Annual National Accounts by types of fixed assets. Compilation of GFCF is performed in several stages:

• taking-over data from statistical surveys and administrative data in an aggregated form,
• methodological adjustments,
• adjustments for completeness,
• balancing adjustments to GFCF as a result of reconciliation procedures between the production and expenditure sides of GDP, as well as the balancing procedures within the SUT.

Adjustments made to the primary data sources used for GFCF compilation can be broken down into data validation adjustments, conceptual adjustments, adjustments for exhaustiveness and balancing adjustments. 

Both GFCF and GDP variables are compiled within Annual National Accounts in SORS.