The Status of EAA in China and Its Reform Ideas Mingmei Zhang, NBS, No.57, Yuetan Nanjie, Shanlihe, Beijing , P.R. China

Agriculture is an important sector in China. The Agriculture Gross Value- Added (GVA) took a share of 11.8 percent to Chinese GDP in The economic accounts for agriculture (EAA) is the basis of national economic accounts.

Before the year 2000, the calculation of Agriculture Gross Value was based on constant price in After the year 2000, the calculation of Agriculture Gross Value was based on comparable price. The growth rate was applied the price single deflator method.

The reason why apply the price single deflator method is: The structure of agricultural products and their prices changes, no longer reflect the current structure of agricultural products and their price changes. So, in 2000, NBS improved the list of agricultural products for the calculation of gross output in agriculture, and developed a survey on producer prices of agricultural products.

 This article main contents: Ⅰ ) the coverage of the EAA; Ⅱ ) the collection of basic data; Ⅲ ) the calculating methods for quarterly and annual agriculture gross output value, its value-added and its growth rate; Ⅳ ) the management on accounting results; Ⅴ ) some problems in China’s EAA; Ⅵ ) suggestions on improving China’s EAA in the future.

 The content of agricultural accounting covers five divisions: Farming Forestry Animal husbandry Fishing and service activities for farming, forestry, animal husbandry and fishing. Ⅰ. Coverage of Accounting

Farming includes four groups: cereals and other crops; vegetables and horticultural crops; fruits, nuts, beverage and spice crops; traditional Chinese medicinal materials. Forestry includes three groups: cultivation and growing of forests, logging of timbers and bamboos, and forest products.

 Animal husbandry covers five groups: raising of livestock; raising of hogs; raising of poultry and etc.  Fishing covers two groups: seawater aquatic products ; freshwater aquatic products (see below table)

I. Farm Procuct 1. Cereal and Other Crops A. Cereal B. Tubers C. Oil-bearing Crops D. Beans E. Cotton F. Fiber Crops G. Sugar Crops H. Tobacco I. Other Crops 2. Vegetables and Horticultural Crops 3. Fruits 4. Nuts 5. Beverage and spice crops 6. Traditional Chinese medicinal materials II. Forest Product 1.Cultivation and Growing of Forests 2. Logging of Bamboos and Timbers 3. Collection of Forest Products III. Animal husbandry 1. Raising of Livestock 2. Raising of Pigs 3. Poultry 4. Other Animal husbandry IV. Fishing 1. Seawater Product 2. Freshwater aquatic products

Output of Agricultural Products Annual Statistical Report on Production of Farming, Forestry, Animal husbandry, and Fishing. Ⅱ. Data Sources

Prices of Agricultural Products and deflators the agricultural producers’ price sampling survey and key case survey

Ratios of Value-Added annual surveys on intermediate consumption and input-output survey

III. Calculating Methods National data are obtained through tabulation of all provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities. Output value at current price = output of products * produce price. Output value at comparable price = output value at current price / deflator. Growth rate = output value at comparable price / output value at current price.

Annual value added at current prices = total output value - intermediate consumption Quarterly value added at current pricesare = gross output value * ratios of value-added.

Prices of agriculture products Average price of one unit of one representative agricultural product Average price of all units of one province of a representative agricultural product

Representative products are selected for all divisions in agriculture section, that is farming, forestry, animal husbandry and fishing, cover over 90 percent of classes.

NBS formulated the representative category and products for the national producers’ price survey on agricultural products, including 4 divisions: farming, forestry, animal husbandry and fishing, 14 groups, 30 classes and 180 representative products

Price index of agriculture products Price index of one unit of a representative products Price index of all units of a representative products Price index of all units of small representative categories of products Price index of all units of middle representative categories of products Price index of all units of large representative categories of products

Calculation of the weights of representative products The weight for the sales of agricultural products is calculated mainly based on its sales values, and those of all representative products sales totals to 1000, and those of output value of all representative products sum up to 1000.

An example of a scheme for deriving weights Code Output value Represent large category weight Weights (shares) of medium category in a large category Farming - totalA a) Others (non-representative) b) Sum of the representative medium categories A' Corn and other cereals1.1' Vegetables1.2' Fruits and nuts1.3'

IV. Joint Data Review and Data Dissemination procedure Since 2005, China has conducted periodic national reviews to cross-check data at the lower level to data at the national level. The data are checked to see if prices of goods are covered by surveys, and the products selected for price surveys are truly representative, thus the appropriateness of deflation indexes. Data are disseminated only after verification.

V. Main Problems of China’s Agricultural Statistics 1. Statistics on agricultural basic data has yet satisfied all the needs of accounting. ⅰ ) Part of agricultural products such as wield plants and Chinese medicinal materials has not been fully covered; ⅱ )The output of animal husbandry only includes hogs and cattle on a sample survey basis; ⅲ )The quantity indicators used for estimating vegetables and fruits need to be improved; ⅳ ) Aquatic products, forest products and new industrial products selected for price surveys may not be representative.

2. Absence of statistical basis for service activities for agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishing.

VI. Some Ideas on Agriculture Accounting in the Future 1.The first is to advance statistics on farming, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishing products; the second is to appropriately increase statistics on output of quarter agricultural products. 2.Enlarge the coverage of samples of agricultural products price survey

3.Strengthen the management of agriculture accounting data 4.Pay more attention to the research of statistical method on service activities for agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishing 5. Perfect agriculture accounting and its related professional data evaluation system

Thank you!