External trade statistics. Users guide.

Abstract

The Statistical Office of the European Communities (Eurostat) compiles statistics on the external trade of the Community and trade between Member States. The basic data are collected, processed and forwarded regularly by the Member States. These statistics form the basis for a large number of Eurostat productions catering for various requirements of the Community institutions and of outside users. The uses to which they are put range from the detailed level needed to conduct multilateral and bilateral negotiations under the common commercial policy to the more aggregated level required for the purposes of economic forecasts and analyses. Statistics on external trade constitute the cornerstone of sectoral or overall analyses and must therefore be tailored to suit these applications. Consequently, Community productions relating to external trade have over the years branched out and become more and more diversified and the need for a user's guide has become apparent. On a parallel with this, the proliferation of dissemination media has led to a more widespread and flexible use of the data available. Alongside the traditional methods of dissemination on paper there are now microfiches, magnetic tapes and on-line data banks. These new media necessitate improved guidance as regards access, choice and utilization and also as regards the definitions and basic methods adopted for the compilation of these statistics. In this guide Eurostat provides, for the first time, specific information on the data published. Its aim is twofold: • to provide the basic methodological information required for using Eurostat's external trade statistics; • to give the user guidance as to the various ways and means of obtaining the statistical ¡information he seeks. The reader will thus find: (lì a methodological guide; (II) a guide to Eurostat productions; (IIII a list of prices and useful addresses. This brief guide in no way purports to be a handbook on external trade statistics methodology, but does none the less give some idea of the substantial and painstak.