1. Item 7: Imports and Exports
ESTP course on National Accounts ESA 2010
Luxembourg, 15 May May Eurostat

2. Imports and exports Goods and services account
Purpose: close the recording system
Case of supply/use tables

3. Goods & Services account (SUT)
SUPPLY OF GOODS & SERVICES:
Output + Trade margin + Transport margin + (Taxes-Subsidies on products) + Imports
USE OF GOODS & SERVICES:
Intermediate consumption + Final consumption + GFCF + Changes in inventories + Exports

4. Definitions
Imports of goods and services consist of transactions in goods and services (purchases, barters, gifts or grants) from non-residents to residents (ESA 2010 § 3.159)
Exports of goods and services consist of transactions in goods and services (sales, barters, gifts or grants) from residents to non-residents (ESA 2010 § 3.158)
Transaction => change of economic ownership

5. Concept of residency
The total economy is defined in terms of resident units
A unit is a resident unit of a country when it has a centre of predominant economic interest on the economic territory of that country
That is, when it engages for an extended period (one year or more) in economic activities on this territory (ESA 2010-§1.61)

6. Centre of predominant economic interest
A location (e.g. land or building) within the economic territory
From which economic activities are engaged
producing, financing, insuring, redistributing
consuming
owning land or buildings
Over a period of at least one year

7. Economic territory
Geographic territory, administered by a government, within which persons, goods, services and capital can move freely
Also included are for example:
national air-space
territorial enclaves (e.g. embassies, military bases, etc.)
territorial waters
part of the continental shelf (North Sea)

8. Economic territory

9. A relative (area-specific) concept
Country (ESA, SNA)
Regional economic areas (e.g. Euro area, European Union, ASEAN, etc.)
World
Non additivity of imports/exports
Additivity of balances (in theory)

10. Imports and exports exclude:
Income flows (e.g. compensation of employees, interest and revenues from FDI)
Sale or purchase of financial assets, non-produced assets (such as land)

11. Imports/Exports of goods; Definition (1)
Imports and exports of goods occur when economic ownership of goods changes between residents and non-residents
This applies irrespective of corresponding physical movements of goods across frontiers

12. Imports/Exports of goods; Definition (2)
For deliveries between affiliated enterprises (branch or subsidiary, or foreign affiliate): a change of economic ownership is imputed whenever goods are delivered between affiliated enterprises
This applies only when the establishment receiving the goods assumes responsibility for making the decisions about the levels of supply and prices at which their output is delivered for the market

13. Imports/Exports of goods include:
Non-monetary gold (i.e. not used for the purposes of monetary policy)
Paper money and coins not in circulation and un-issued securities
Electricity, gas and water
Smuggled goods, drugs

14. Exports of goods without the goods crossing the frontier
Examples:
goods produced by resident units operating in international waters are sold directly to non-residents in foreign countries
transportation equipment or other movable equipment not tied to a fixed location
goods after changing ownership, which are lost or destroyed before they have crossed the frontier of the exporting country
merchanting, i.e. the purchase of a good by a resident from a non-resident and the subsequent resale of the good to another non-resident, without the good entering the merchant's economy

15. Imports and exports exclude
The following goods which nevertheless may cross the national frontier:
goods in transit through a country
goods shipped to or from country's own embassies, military bases or other enclaves inside the national frontiers of another country
transportation equipment and other movable kinds of equipment which leave a country temporarily, without any change of economic ownership
equipment and other goods which are sent abroad for processing, maintenance, servicing or repair
other goods which leave a country temporarily, being generally returned within a year in their original state and without change of economic ownership

16. Imports/Exports of goods: FOB valuation
Value of the goods at basic prices
+ transport and distribution costs up to the border of the exporting country (May differ from the border of the importing country considered in CIF)
+ taxes less subsidies on the goods exported

17. Imports/Exports of goods: main source
External trade statistics
High level of detail for commodities (> in the EU case)
High level of detail for trading partners (> 200)
International harmonisation (Harmonised System of the UN, WCO)
Very reliable data sources (Customs data in general)
CIF valuation for imports

18. Imports/Exports of goods
The European case
Two data collection systems:
Extra-EU: Customs data
Intra-EU: Intrastat survey

19. Imports/Exports of goods
National versus Community concept
National concept:
no quasi-transit trade
country of origin for imports
Community concept:
quasi-transit trade captured when Extra-EU flows involved
country of consignment for Intra-EU imports

20. Imports/Exports of goods
Example: quasi-transit trade Shoes are imported from China to Antwerp (BE) with a value of 10 million euros and re-exported to France with a value of 20 million euros
Belgian accounts (national concept):
Imports, 0 / Exports, 0
French accounts (national concept):
Imports from China, 20 million € (source Intrastat) / Exports, 0
European accounts (community concept):
Imports, 10 million € (source Customs)/Exports 0

21. CIF valuation of imports
The CIF price is the price of a good delivered at the frontier of the importing country before the payment of any import duties or other taxes on imports or trade and transport margins within the country (ESA §3.169)
CIF values used in Supply and Use tables
FOB values used in National Accounts (and BoP statistics)
=> CIF/FOB correction applied to total imports of goods

22. Imports/Exports of services
Definition: imports of services consist of all services rendered by non-residents to residents
Definition: exports of services consist of all services rendered by residents to non-residents

23. Imports/Exports of services include:
transportation of exported goods after they have left the frontier of the exporting country when provided by a resident carrier
transportation of imported goods by a resident carrier;
transportation of goods by residents on behalf of non-residents which does not involve imports or exports of the goods
processing and repair activities on behalf of non-residents; these activities are to be recorded net, i.e. as an export of services excluding the value of the goods processed or repaired
installation of equipment abroad when a project is of limited duration by its nature

24. Imports/Exports of services
Main data source: BoP statistics
Survey of enterprises (airlines, hotel/restaurants)
Survey of households (travel expenditure)
International transactions reporting system (ITRS linked to exchange controls)
Administrative data sources (by-product of administrative functions)
Official data (e.g. government services)
Information from partner countries & international organisations
Modelling (e.g. FISIM)

25. Thanks for your attention!