1. 1 ITS-TIS September 2006 OECD Balance of Payments The quality review and follow-up Bill Cave and Isaac Lagnado OECD Statistics Directorate

2. Overview OECD Statistics Quality Review of BOP activity 2004 Self-assessment of what we do Users and stakeholders Report 2005 Progress and Follow-up

3. Self-assessment of what we do STD Balance of Payments (BOP) activity is twofold. compilation and maintenance of the BOP Dataset –aims to provide analysts with timely and internationally comparable summary set of BOP data items for OECD (and Big 6) coordination of OECD interests in Balance of Payments (excluding FDI where DAFFE leads) – representation of these in methodological development work of the IMF Balance of Payments Committee Links to Trade in Services, FDI, Merchandise trade, Remittances, National Accounts, Financial Accounts etc

4. Methodological Standards BOP methodological standards set by IMF BOP Manual 5 th Edition – now being revised IMF strongly encourages countries to present data according IMF BPM5 standards All OECD countries ostensibly do so But national compilation methods vary e.g. ITRS, Surveys, Customs and Other administrative data Generally good level of international comparability

5. 5 ITS-TIS September 2006 Core Variables collected 1 Current Account B(alance) –Goods – X, M, B –Services – X, M, B –Income – Cr, Db, B –Current Transfers – B 2 Capital Account – B 3 Financial Account – B –FDI Abroad, FDI in Reporting Economy –Portfolio Investment Assets,.. Liabilities –Financial derivatives net –Other Investment Assets, … Liabilities –Change in reserve assets 4 Net Errors and Omissions

6. How are data collected? Web Queries SIMS : electronic files or interrogation of National databases Manual entry – seek to minimise Seasonal adjustment of current account series, where countries do not provide(X12 ARIMA using Fame routines)

7. Measures and controls Measures are: – national currency unadjusted and seasonally adjusted (current account only) –US Dollar unadjusted and seasonally adjusted (selected variables only) Data controls –Data capture – series by series historic comparisons –MEI validation controls CB=G+S+I+T FA=DI+PI+FD+OI+RA CB+CAP+FA+NEO=0

8. Users ECO are our most important user for their economic forecasting and analysis. –Timeliness –Want 24 hour updating during peak periods –Seasonal adjusted data DAF for investment committee or publications –Quarterly data DSTI Detailed annual data General demand for zone totals

9. Main Quality Review Recommendations Develop Zone totals More automatic data collection and improve quality control, and timeliness Review metadata in 2006 Take opportunities to raise the profile of BOP dataset No clear demand for more monthly series Review how to make non-member BOP more coherent

10. Recent Developments in BOP More $ series Zones OECD and G7 Totals for Goods, Services, FDI and G7 Monitoring timeliness – Exhibit A and B Coordination with Non-member BOP – Factbook Newsletter article Proactive discussion with users

11. Zone totals for FDI Flows

12. Data dissemination MEI –BOP data are compiled, stored and published in the MEI database. Dissemination simply reflects the case of the MEI database as a whole Press release –Quarterly news release for Trade in Goods and Services OECD.Stat – BOP dataset on OLIS and free subset on Internet

13. Current Plans Review and Revise Metadata by End 2005 Improve timeliness Create new Zone totals – OECD Europe, N America, Asia-Pacific Improve Quality: with SIMS to develop new data preparation and validation area Non-members?

14. 14 ITS-TIS September 2006 The End Thank you for your attention Any comments or questions?