Istat - Italian National Statistical Institute

DCCN - Directorate for National Accounts

Process manager: Giovanni Savio
Contact for quality reporting: Chiara Rossi

Process manager: Director of Italian Directorate for National Accounts
Contact for quality reporting: database management

Via Depretis, 74/B 00184 Rome Italy

dccn@istat.it

The system of national accounts describes in quantitative terms and in the context of an accounting framework the whole set of economic and financial activities of a country or its specific territorial subdivisions, for a period coinciding with the calendar year and for shorter time intervals (quarters). As for any organized economic unit, be it a large enterprise or a single family, also for a country taken as a whole it is possible to build periodic cost and revenue statements in order to record, in aggregate form and systematic way, all the actions undertaken by economic operators taking part in the process of formation, distribution and use of resources. National accounts estimates are produced in accordance with the provisions of the European System of National and Regional Accounts Manual (ESA 2010), which represents the application at European level of the System of National Accounts (SNA 2008) of the United Nations.

The main aggregates observed and disseminated at annual level are:  GDP and its components, exports and imports of goods and services, compensation of employees and labour input. GDP components are provided by industry, durability, consumption purpose and assets according to the aggregate. Employment data are disseminated by industry.

The ESA 2010 provides a methodology on common standards, definitions, internationally harmonised classifications and accounting rules that are used for compiling national accounts on comparable bases.

The ESA 2010 defines classifications to be used for: institutional sectors, transactions in products, transactions in non-financial non-produced assets, distributive transactions, transactions in financial assets and liabilities, other changes in assets, balancing and net worth items, balance sheet entries, non-financial assets, financial assets and liabilities.

In addition, for several breakdowns ESA 2010 makes use of other classifications: NACE Rev. 2 for economic activities, CPA 2.1 for products by economic activities, COFOG for the functions of government, COICOP for individual consumption by purpose, COPNI for classification of the purposes of non-profit institutions serving households, . The level of detail in the classifications used for dissemination of annual national accounts are more aggregated than in that used for calculation.

A full overview of classifications is available in:

- ESA 2010 Chapter 23 Classifications

National accounts describe the whole economy of a country and they respect the exhaustiveness principle including also the non-observed economy. All units that have their centre of predominant economic interest in the economic territory of that country are covered. All institutional sectors and all industries are represented.

All statistical concepts and definitions used in the main aggregates of national accounts are described in Annex A of the ESA 2010 Regulation (ESA2010 methodology - Blue book) and concern the input-output framework and the aggregates by industry.

The Italian national accounts are compiled on the basis of a system of statistical sources and administrative data adapted to match the ESA definitions. National accounts measure a broad set of variables that describe the economic system, its evolution over time and its relations with the rest of the world. The annual estimates of GDP at current prices are obtained starting from the estimates of the demand components (intermediate consumption, final consumption, gross fixed capital formation, and exports) and of the supply components (domestic production and imports). The estimates of the two sides of the economy are mainly made on independent and integrated approaches within a system of supply and use tables (SUT). The tables allows to analyse and reconcile the differences between supply and demand until they are reduced to statistical discrepancies, and to reconcile the estimates with a mathematical process of balancing. In the current compilation process of national accounts, there is no independent estimate of GDP obtained through the income approach, which is based on the sum of the remunerations of the factors of production. In fact, the available statistical sources are inadequate to derive a direct estimate of the gross operating surplus and the mixed income. These components are estimated in a second step, when compiling national accounts by institutional sector, as the difference between value added and primary incomes  that can be measured from direct sources (in the first place compensation of employees).

The estimation processes are carried out at the highest possible level of disaggregation to ensure an adequate representation of the economic phenomena and their evolution over time. The compilation methods used provide comprehensive estimates of GDP and national income, including the non-observed components of the economy. As regards the volume estimates, the deflation of the aggregates estimated at current prices is carried out applying different methods on the supply side and the demand side.

The value added at the prices of the previous year is estimated by applying the double-deflation method, which entails: a) the estimation of the current values of output and intermediate consumption; b) their deflation by means of Paasche type price indices of output and input respectively, obtaining output and intermediate consumption at the prices of the previous year; c) the calculation of the value added at the prices of the previous year as the difference between these two aggregates.

On the demand side, each component of expenditure is deflated using price indices adapted to the types of goods and services. These indices are mainly based on consumer prices, output prices, as well as import and export prices. Since the aggregates expressed at the prices of the previous year are not suitable for comparisons over time, they must be chain-linked and referred to a base year (year 2015 from September 2019).The resulting values are based on chain-linked volume indeces of the Laspeyres, which are subsequently expressed in monetary terms by multiplying them by the value at current prices in the base year.

The elementary building blocks of ESA 2010 statistics are statistical units and their groupings. ESA 2010, defines two types of units: (a) institutional unit; (b) local kind-of-activity unit (local KAU). An institutional unit is an economic entity characterised by decision-making autonomy in the exercise of its main function. A resident unit is considered an institutional unit in the economic territory in which it has its centre of predominant economic interest if it has decision-making autonomy and keeps a complete set of accounts or is able to compile a complete set of accounts. A local KAU groups all parts of an institutional unit in its capacity as a producer which are located in a single site or in closely located sites, and which contribute to the performance of NACE Rev class (four-digit) level activity.

An institutional unit comprises one or more local KAUs; a local KAU belongs to one and only one institutional unit.

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

Istat publishes national accounts data for Italy.

The ESA 2010 transmission programme requires time-series data for Main aggregates starting from 1995. There are backwards data that refer to previous versions of ESA and show conceptual discontinuities with those compiled in ESA2010.

Italy uses 2015 as the base year for the compilation of volume estimates in chain-linked series.

The flows and stocks are calculated at current prices (million euro), previous year's prices and chain-linked volumes. It is also possible to derive indices and growth rates. Various other measures can also be applied (e.g. percentages, per capita data, data expressed in purchasing power standards).

The aggregates concerning population and labour input are in number (thousands) of persons, hours worked or jobs. Italy also publishes employment data in full-time equivalent units.

All statistics produced and published by the National Statistical Institute of Italy (Istat) are subjected to:

• The Legislative Decree no. 322, of 6 September 1989 (and subsequent modifications and additions Decree of the President of the Republic (DPR) no. 166 of 7 September 2010), which is consistent with the U.N. Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics and places Istat at the center of the National Statistical System (SISTAN). Sistan is a network of public bodies and private agencies that provides official statistical information and includes the statistical offices of all levels of government, Chambers of commerce, industry, crafts industries, agriculture and other public bodies as well as private subjects having public functions.
• The Decree of the President of the Council of Ministers (DPCM) which every year approves the National Statistical Programme

Moreover, the Committee for Directing and Coordinating Statistical Information (COMSTAT), over which Istat presides, defines and issues binding directives for executing the National Statistical Programme. Istat has a legal obligation to publish and disseminate data (Article 15, in particular paragraph 1[g] of the Legislative Decree no. 322, 6 September 1989).

National accounts estimates respect the provisions of the European System of National and Regional Accounts Manual (ESA 2010), which represents the application at European level of the System of National Accounts (SNA 2008) of the United Nations. Regulation (EU) of the European Parliament and of the Council No 549/2013 on the European system of national and regional accounts introduces ESA 2010 that includes a mandatory transmission programme of data. All the estimation processes that contribute to the building of national economic accounts are included in the National Statistical Plan approved by Presidential Decree (https://www.sistan.it/?id=52).

National accounts data are key datasets used and published by many international organisations to improve data consistency and exploit synergies for data collection and validation.

The Legislative Decree no. 322 of 6 September 1989 contains provisions on data sharing and coordination within SISTAN: according to the article no. 6 Statistical Offices, under the coordination of Istat, shall cooperate with other authorities for the execution of the surveys provided for in the National Statistical Programme.

Directives issued by COMSTAT have further strengthened these provisions. In addition, Istat has developed statistical information systems utilized throughout SISTAN for sharing data. Istat also cooperates closely with agencies that do not belong to SISTAN through specific data sharing protocols and agreements. According to the Regulation (EC) No 223/2009.and to the DPR no. 166 of 7 September 2010, Istat is part of the European Statistical System and coordinates and shares data with the Commission (Eurostat) and the others national statistical institutes and other national authorities responsible in each Member State for the development, production and dissemination of European Statistics.

Several national legal acts guarantee the confidentiality of data requested for statistical purposes. In Italy, according to art. 9, paragraph 1 of the Legislative Decree n. 322 of 1989, statistical data cannot be disseminated but in aggregated form, in order to make it impossible to make any reference to identifiable individuals. They can only be used for statistical purposes.

 Official statistics must also safeguard the rights, basic freedoms, and dignity of respondents, in particular with regard to the right to confidentiality and personal identity. Istat assures the protection of personal data according to the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC) and the Italian Data Protection Code (Legislative Decree no. 196/2003) and Code of conduct and professional practice applying to the processing of personal data for statistical and scientific research purposes within the framework of the national statistical system.

 In order to make statistical secrecy and protection of personal data effective, Istat is currently taking appropriate organisational, logistical, methodological and statistical measures in accordance with internationally established standards.

 Moreover, Legislative Decree n. 322 of 1989, art. 6 and 6 bis provides that the exchange of personal data within the National Statistical System (Sistan) is possible if it is necessary to fulfil requirements provided by the National Statistical Programme or to allow the pursuit of institutional purposes.

Finally, in implementation of art. 5-ter of the legislative decree 14 March 2013, no. 33, the new “Guidelines for the access for scientific purposes to the elementary data of the National Statistical System” establish the conditions under which the bodies and offices of the National Statistical System can allow researchers to access their own elementary data for scientific purposes.

National accounts main aggregates are disseminated at a level of detail that does not imply confidentiality issues.

In December of each year ISTAT publishes a press release calendar setting the release dates for the coming year. The calendar is distributed to the press and is available free of charge.

IISTAT posts the calendar on the website (https://www.istat.it/en/information-and-services/journalists/release-calendar). Not all the disseminations are included in the press release calendar but all are included in the weekly update Calendario delle diffusioni e degli eventi (https://www.istat.it/it/informazioni-e-servizi/per-i-giornalisti/appuntamenti/calendario-diffusioni-ed-eventi).

According to its mission, Istat disseminates statistical information in order to make it accessible and usable to everyone and to remove any barriers to the use of data.

All data releases are posted on Istat website according to a prefixed annual release calendar, published by the previous December.

Time series are available on I.Stat data warehouse, and users can choose information according to their needs, building customised tables or downloading pre-packaged datasets.

Meta-information - methodologies, classifications, definitions always accompany data.   

Books, press releases, datasets and infographics are also available on Istat web site; moreover, main contents are disseminated through Istat Official Twitter account and other social networks. All Istat information is available free of charge and data are reusable providing the source.

Frequency of dissemination of the Annual National Accounts for Italy - main aggregates are disseminated two times per year (see also Section 10.1 and 10.3) 

All Italian National Accounts press/news releases can be downloaded from https://www.istat.it/it/conti-nazionali  Short forms are available in English (https://www.istat.it/en/national-accounts).

For Annual National Accounts - Main Aggregates data, two press releases each year are made available: PIL e indebitamento AP (usually 1st March - GDP and General Government Net Borrowing) and Conti economici nazionali (usually 22 September - Annual National Accounts).

All Istat's general publications (https://www.istat.it/en/analysis-and-products/publications), presenting analyses and data on the state of the country observed from multiple points of view, contains National Accounts data: Rapporto Annuale (May - Annual Report), Noi Italia (January - Noi Italia), Annuario Statistico italiano (November - only in Italian), Italia in Cifre (February - Italy in figures)

The complete set of series is issued, at the same time of the press release, through the Istat data warehouse I.Stat in the section National Accounts.

Not applicable.

In addition to news releases and other publications (see sections 10.1 and 10.2), information on national accounts may be posted using social media.

Twitter account: @istat_it

The general methodological framework for the compilation of national accounts in the EU is European System of Accounts ESA 2010 - Blue Book (2013).

General Government estimates are compiled in accordance with the Manual on Government Deficit and Debt - Implementation of ESA 2010, published by Eurostat in 2019.

Also, guidance manuals on specific topics are available, e.g. Eurostat-OECD Compilation guide on land estimation, Eurostat-OECD compilation guide on inventories, Manual on measuring Research and Development in ESA 2010.

The manuals above specifically apply to EU national accounts statistics. However, world-wide equivalents are often also available: SNA 2008, Quarterly National Accounts Manual, Handbook on Input-Output Table Compilation and Analysis, Government Finance Statistics Manual. 

The Istat Information system on quality of statistical production processes SIQual contains information on the execution on Istat statistical production processes and on activities developed to guarantee quality of the produced statistical information.

National quality report for Italy has been compiled and submitted to Eurostat for Years 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019. The 2020 one is being validated.

Since the 90s Istat adopted a systematic approach to ensure quality in both statistical information and service to the community. For this purpose, the Italian National Institute of Statistics has defined a quality policy providing itself with appropriate tools as well as management changes to carry it out.

Istat quality policy is aimed at the improvement of statistical outputs and processes through the development of appropriate methodologies and tools as well as an appropriate scientific and technical support, provided to the personnel directly involved in the production and dissemination of statistical information.

Istat quality policy is coherent with the European framework developed by Eurostat, taking up its main principles and definitions stated in the European Statistics Code of Practice and useful to ensure and strengthen the accountability and governance of the European Statistical System and of the National Statistical Systems.

For details: https://www.istat.it/en/organisation-and-activity/institutional-activities/quality-commitment

Quality evaluation for Italian National Accounts data are presented in the Eurostat assessment report released each year according to Regulation (EU) No 549/2013 (Eurostat’s assessment of quality of national and regional accounts for the year 2019 (last disseminated) available at https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/7870049/12108401/KS-FT-20-007-EN-N.pdf/a2229bc1-ff53-b246-18af-8791f124571d).

National accounts data provide relevant information for economic policy monitoring and decision making, for forecasting, for administrative purposes, for informing the general public about economic developments (directly or indirectly via news agencies), and as input for economic research.

Ministry of Finance and other economic institutions, regional agencies, scientific and academic communities, researchers in the economic field are usually the entities who most use national and regional accounts data.

International Organizations (IMF, OECD, ILO, WB, ECB) and EU Institutions use national accounts data too.

Information on the user satisfaction of the main aggregates are not collected but Istat carries out general user surveys.

Istat is constantly interested in understanding who the users of the statistics it produces are, what the information needs are, whether they match production and if the statistics produced satisfy users. To this aim, together with the analysis of user requests received through the Web Contact Center service, tools for direct consultation were developed, such as the annual online survey of customer satisfaction and indirect tools such as analysis of accesses and of users' browsing paths on the web site.

The overall completeness of the Italian National Accounts Main Aggregates, as required by the ESA 2010 Transmission Programme, is at the high level.

Accuracy is defined as the gap between the published estimate and the true value of the variable. Computing the accuracy of estimates in national accounts (NA) is difficult because many different data sources interact in a complex process. The structure of the NA compilation process starts with different types of data sources as input. The process includes a series of adjustments to the basic data to make them consistent with each other and bring them in line with the National Accounts concepts and methods. See also 17.2 Data revision - practice.

Not applicable.

Istat reduces non-sampling errors through continuous assessments.

Data are validated through the following actions:
 - Assessment of adequacy of estimates compared to definitions (exhaustiveness of estimates)
 - Time series analysis of indicators and checks ratios
 - Comparison with data from other independent sources
 - Additional studies and experiments input data quality
 - Analysis of available time-series

National accounts estimates are the result of a complex compilation process involving both standardized and non-standardized checks. During the calculation process, quality checks of data are performed constantly, which means that many errors are detected and corrected. 

The quality actions for controlling the sources of processing error (data entry, coding, editing and imputation) are:

- Coherence check within data sources
- Coherence check among data sources
- Longitudinal coherence check

 See also Par. 18.4 Data validation.

The first release of main aggregates takes place two months after the end of the reference year (generally the 1st of March). Subsequent estimates are released approximately nine months after the end of the reference year (generally the 21st of September).

Italy delivers most main aggregates tables before or in line with the legal deadline. No delay in the release of the national scheduled press releases.

As the data are compiled according to the requirements of the ESA 2010, Italian national accounts data are fully harmonised and comparable at the European level.

As the data for all reference periods are compiled according to the requirements of the ESA 2010, national accounts data are fully comparable over time. Also, in the case of relevant changes to methods or classifications, revisions of long time series are performed, usually going far back into the past.

In the methodological note attached to each press release the length of available time series is specified (https://www.istat.it/en/national-accounts).

The coherence between the assessed annual main aggregates and the others national accounts domains, according to the ESA2010 Transmission Programme, isThe coherence between the assessed annual main aggregates and the others national accounts domains, according to the ESA2010 Transmission Programme, is high.

The internal coherence of the assessed Italian data is high

Not available.

Main aggregates of national accounts are published twice a year, at the beginning of March and at the end of September. In accordance with the Harmonized European Policy Revision (HERP), main aggregates are subject to a routine revision extended back to year t-3.
In March of every year (hereafter defined as year t) final data for year t-3 are disseminated, together with provisional data for years t-2 and t-1.
The September release fulfils the need to take into account with as much timeliness as possible information for years t-1 and t-2 that becomes available after the first annual release in March. Moreover, it allows the alignment between the estimates of the national accounts and those of the Balance of Payments.

Finally, estimates included in the General Government consolidated account are subject to a revision extended back to year t-4, in accordance with European rules concerning data relevant for the excessive deficit procedure (EDP, Council Regulation No 479/2009).

If it is deemed necessary to revise some aggregates outside of the scheduled timetable, following the correction of errors and/or inconsistencies or revisions due to changes in the General Government sector perimeter, the new estimates are treated as non-scheduled revisions and the modified time-series are re-published in the data warehouse I.Stat. Users are duly informed through the institutional website.

For Annual National Accounts, a section of the press release is dedicated to the explanation and analysis of revisions of main aggregates with respect to the previous release.

Revisions are defined as major general when they are triggered by methodological changes in the treatment of basic data, extraordinary changes in the classification and/or definition of variables. The major revisions – usually introduced every five years – affect the whole time series of data, starting from the reference year for which the new estimate of the level of the aggregates is performed (defined as benchmark estimate). In September 2019, a major general revision of national accounts (benchmark 2019) was conducted. The previous benchmark revision of national accounts, implementing the transition to the new ESA (from ESA95 to ESA 2010) with the ensuing methodological changes, took place in September 2014.

The revision took into account the new sources available and introduced methodological innovations and improvements aimed at enhancing the quality of national accounts. As regards timing, the revision was coordinated with similar operations taking place in most European countries. Note that all releases of Main Aggregates are archived and made available to users in the I.stat database (through the use of the edition field) and it is therefore possible to compare different vintages and check revisions at any time.

Sources include census and sample surveys on businesses and households, as well as statistical registers built by integrating surveys and administrative data. To those are supplemented specific administrative archives (such as some INPS – National Social Welfare Institution - archives), as well as information drawn from external sources, both public and private. Data drawn from surveys or other sources are partly already defined in a consistent way with the definitions of national accounts, while those that follow different definitions must be corrected and appropriately reclassified to comply with the registration rules established by ESA.

Below a synthetic list of main sources used to compile the final version of national accounts, usually available after two years from the end of the reference year (in March of year t for data referring to year t-3).

As regards estimates of the supply side, the most relevant sources are those providing census information on enterprises: the statistical register of active enterprises (ASIA-Enterprises) and the information system on economic results of enterprises (Frame-SBS in the following). Frame-SBS database includes information on economic results for the whole population of active market enterprises (excluding agriculture and financial intermediation) at a micro level. It is built through a complex procedure of integration data from administrative archives, statistically processed and combined with data drawn from the survey on small and medium enterprises (PMI) and the survey on the financial statements of large enterprises (SCI). Information on the financial statements of companies operating in financial intermediation are provided by the Bank of Italy, the insurance supervisory authority (Istituto per la vigilanza sulle assicurazioni - IVASS) and the supervisory commission on pension funds (Commissione di vigilanza sui fondi pensione - COVIP). The estimates for the primary sector (Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing) are based on several sectoral sources, integrating the information derived from the survey on economic outcomes of agricultural holdings (RICA-REA) and the survey on the structure and output of agricultural holdings (SPA).

For the non-profit sector a dedicated database has been built starting from the statistical register of private non-profit institutions and public institutions, integrated with the information obtained from the sample survey on the third sector and a set of administrative archives (UNIEMENS INPS, IRAP, UNICO, VAT).

As far as the Public Administration is concerned , a very analytical approach is used, based on the collection and processing of financial statement data of the whole set of institutional units included in this sector, both at the central and at the local level. For some government units (e.g. the State, municipalities, regions, local health care units, universities, social security institutions) data are collected through a centralized system, while for other units a specific statistical survey of financial statements in summary form is used (RIDDCUE survey). For the estimation of taxes, the source data are integrated with those provided by the Tax and revenue agency (Agenzia delle entrate) and by the Finance Department of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF). For the most recent year (t-1), information from State Sector working balance compiled by the Ministry of Economy and Finance is used, together with the data on cash flow collected by the Information System on the Operations of Government Bodies (SIOPE), widely exploited for local entities.

As regards the demand side, estimates of private consumption are based primarily on data provided by the household expenditure survey. For part of the goods purchased by households, as well as for some capital goods, the commodity-flow method is applied, calculating the value of final uses available for consumption and for capital formation in an indirect way, starting from the resources (defined as the sum of production and imports, less exports). For gross fixed capital formation, estimates obtained with the commodity-flow method are complemented by information on firm activities derived from Frame-SBS and specific sources, such as registers of vehicles and of shipping, the Building Permits Survey, data on military expenditure from the Ministry of Defence, and the results of R&D surveys. As regards foreign trade (imports and exports of goods and services), the data derive from the survey on traded goods (Intrastat and Extrastat systems) conducted by Istat and from information on the trade of services extracted from the Balance of Payments compiled by the Bank of Italy.

As regards labour input estimates, information collected by the Labour force survey is integrated with a broad database of administrative data (particularly social contribution statements) submitted to a statistical treatment. Information from statistical registers compiled in Istat are also used: the statistical register of active enterprises (ASIA-Enterprises), the statistical register of agriculture enterprises (ASIA-Agriculture), the statistical register of private non-profit institutions and public institutions, base population register and thematic register on labour.

Frequency of collection varies from quarter to annual.

The data used for the compilation of national accounts come from other Directorates of the Institute and other external organizations or Institutions. The main interchange of data flows with external bodies and Institutions is regulated by negotiating Acts (framework agreements, conventions, research protocols and agreements) established with Istat or directly with the National Accounts Directorate. The Acts typically set up annexes or protocols defining activities to be performed, regulating data provision obligations and data quality standards; data transmission procedures and timing are defined.

Concerning the information and data flows internal to Istat, Service Level Agreements (SLA) regulate relations between the statistical production structures and directions that provide services (data capturing, methodological assistance, IT services, dissemination and communication). 

Data from administrative sources are collected and managed by the Directorate for the data collection. Currently, the data flows requested by the Directorate for National Accounts to other Directorates are governed by a standardized procedure that defines technical details and timing of data delivery and identifies persons authorized to statistical treatment. In particular, as regards administrative data, the programming of the provision of files and archives from the Institutions gathering them for administrative purposes is defined through Istat “Three-year Plan of Administrative Data”. Medium term planning is then implemented setting a yearly programme that defines the specific details and calendar of data delivery.

In Italy, an important procedural step in the validation process is the storage and reporting system of the results. The whole set of aggregates are examined and compared with other aggregates of national accounts not included in the Supply and Use framework using a system of cross-tabulation and time-series graphical analysis. The system automatically presents comparisons of a rich set of variables, including labour input measures (employment and hours worked), compensation of employees, labour productivity measures, value added to output ratios, etc. The internal coherence of the whole set of estimates is easily examined and assured.

For the validation of main aggregates data, Italy applies minimum validation checks, some internal to NA’s datawarehouse and others agreed with Eurostat. The data transmitted to Eurostat are submitted to the validation system (CONVAL) that applies the rules contained in the ESA 2010 validation Handbook.

Analysis of the adequacy of sources
 Data processing for definition reconcilation
 Data processing for classification reconcilation
 Microdata assembling to reconstruct the set of observations
Macrodata integration
 Macrodata assembling
 Editing and imputation of outliers and/or missing data
 Drafting tables and graph for Istat publications
 Data smoothing or interpolation (regressions, moving averages, ...) by statistical techniques
 Analytical insights based on advanced statistical techniques
Elaborating time series
Revising of time series
 Processing final macrodata
Elaborating indicators
Elaborating intermediate economic aggregates
Elaborating final economic aggregates (to be published)
Setting up final macrodata files for Eurostat
Setting up final macrodata files for national disseminationItalian national accounts are compiled building on a system of statistical sources and administrative data adapted to match ESA definitions. The accounts measure a broad set of variables that describe the economic system, its evolution over time and its relationships with the rest of the world. The annual estimates of GDP at current prices are obtained starting from the estimates of demand components (final consumption, gross fixed capital formation, intermediate consumption and exports) and of supply components (domestic production and imports). Estimates of the two sides of the economy are carried out mainly on independent approaches and integrated within a SUT system of supply and use tables (SUT). SUT allows to analyse and reconcile the differences between demand and supply until they are reduced to statistical discrepancies, handled through a mathematical balancing process.

In the current compilation process of national accounts, there is no independent estimate of GDP/GNI obtained through the income approach, that is based on the sum of the remunerations of the production factors. In fact, the available statistical sources are inadequate in deriving a direct estimate of gross operating surplus and mixed income. These components are estimated in a second step, when compiling national accounts by institutional sector, as the difference between final estimates of value added and the other distributed primary incomes (in the first place compensation of employees) that can be measured from direct sources. As a rule, the estimation processes are performed at the highest possible level of disaggregation to ensure both a high degree of reliability of the estimates and an adequate detail to represent the economic phenomena under analysis and their evolution over time. The methods applied in the compilation process provide comprehensive estimates of GDP and national income, including the non-observed components of the economy. As regards volume estimates (also called "at constant prices"), the deflation of aggregates previously estimated at current prices is performed applying different methods to the supply side and to the demand side. For the former, value added at prices of the previous year is estimated by applying the double-deflation method, which entails: a) the estimation of the current values of output and intermediate consumption; b) their deflation through Paasche type price indexes of output and input respectively, obtaining output and intermediate consumption at prices of the previous year; c) the calculation of value added at prices of the previous year as the difference between these two aggregates. On the demand side, each component of expenditure is deflated using price indices appropriate to the types of goods and services. These indices are mainly based on consumer prices, output prices, as well as import and export prices. Since aggregates expressed at prices of the previous year are not suitable for time comparisons, they must be chain-linked and referred to a base year (2015 since September 2019).The resulting values are based on Laspeyres type of chained volume indexes, which are subsequently expressed in money terms by multiplying them by the value at current prices in the base year.

The compilation process of national accounts involves a series of adjustments to the basic data to make them consistent with each other and bring them in line with the concepts and methods of national accounts. In particular, all types of production activities are included in the national accounts, even those non-observed (i.e. underground, illegal and informal activities, household production for own final use, or missing activities due to deficiencies in the basic data collection system).

Annual data assure additivity between the total and the sum of components at current and at previous year’s prices.

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