Business Statistics [EU]
European business statistics
Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 on European business statistics
It establishes rules for:
developing, producing and disseminating European business statistics;
a European framework for statistical business registers.
Key Points
European business statistics cover:
the structure, performance and economic research and development, innovation and information and communication technology (ICT) activities of various statistical units, including e-commerce and global supply chains;
the production and international trade of manufactured goods and services.
The European framework for statistical business registers is the authoritative source for deriving high quality and harmonised statistical business register populations for the production of European business statistics. It comprises:
national statistical business registers covering all enterprises and their local units carrying out economic activities contributing to the gross domestic product (GDP);
the EuroGroups Register covering all enterprises and their legal units carrying out economic activities contributing to the GDP which are part of a multinational group;
the data exchanges between them.
Sources
National statistical authorities in EU countries may use the following sources for producing business statistics and setting up national statistical business registers:
surveys;
administrative records, including information from tax and customs authorities, such as annual financial statements;
exchanged microdata;
other relevant data that are comparable and meet the specific quality requirements.
Coverage
European business statistics cover the following areas:
short-term;
country-level;
regional;
international.
Each area must include one or more key topics, for example business population, outputs and performance, ICT usage and e-commerce, R & D inputs, global value chains and international trade in goods and services. Annex I to the regulation describes the topics in detail.
Annex II sets out the frequency (monthly, quarterly, annually or multiannually), the reference period and the statistical unit for each topic.
States
EU countries:
establish 1 or more national statistical business registers. These are the basis for:
preparing and coordinating surveys,
information for the statistical analysis of the business population and its demography,
use of administrative data,
identifying and constructing statistical units;
ensure the quality of the European business statistics, the national statistical business registers and the EuroGroups Register;
send the European Commission (Eurostat) data as well as quality and metadata reports.
Specific rules apply to the exchange between Eurostat, national statistical authorities and central banks and the European Central Bank of confidential data on multinational groups and internal EU trade in goods, provided this is exclusively for statistical purposes.
Eurostat:
sets up the EuroGroups Register of multinational enterprise groups;
assesses the quality of the data it receives;
provides annual quality and metadata reports related to the EuroGroups Register;
may launch pilot studies that national authorities carry out voluntarily where it identifies a need for new or improved data.
The Commission may adopt delegated and implementing acts to amend the legislation, provided these do not impose significant additional cost or burden on national authorities or respondents. It has adopted the following acts.
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1030 laying down the specifications of data requirements for the topic ‘ICT usage and e-commerce’ for the reference year 2021, pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/2152.
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1197 laying down specifications and arrangements pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 on European business statistics, repealing 10 legal acts in the field of business statistics.
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1470 on the nomenclature of countries and territories for the European statistics on international trade in goods and on the geographical breakdown for other business statistics. It repeals, from 1 January 2021, Commission Regulation (EU) No 1106/2012 on statistics relating to external trade with non-EU countries, as regards the update of the nomenclature of countries and territories.
The EU may provide financial support to national statistical institutes and other authorities for various activities, such as developing better quality or lower cost methodologies.
Context
The regulation repeals:
from 1 January 2021, Regulations (EC) No 48/2004, (EC) No 808/2004, (EC) No 716/2007, (EC) No 177/2008, (EC) No 295/2008 and (EEC) No 3924/91 and Decision No 1608/2003/EC;
from 1 January 2022, Regulations (EC) No 638/2004 and (EC) No 471/2009;
from 1 January 2024, Regulation (EC) No 1165/98.
FROM WHEN DOES THE REGULATION APPLY?
It applies from 1 January 2021.
BACKGROUND
Previously, statistical information on the economic activities of national businesses was based on various pieces of legislation. This prevented consistency of individual statistical data and an integrated approach towards developing, producing and disseminating business statistics. The new regulation remedies these defects.
For more information, see:
European business statistics manual (Eurostat).
MAIN DOCUMENT
Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 on European business statistics, repealing 10 legal acts in the field of business statistics (OJ L 327, 17.12.2019, pp. 1-35)
RELATED DOCUMENTS
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1470 of 12 October 2020 on the nomenclature of countries and territories for the European statistics on international trade in goods and on the geographical breakdown for other business statistics (OJ L 334, 13.10.2020, pp. 2-21)
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1197 of 30 July 2020 laying down technical specifications and arrangements pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European business statistics repealing 10 legal acts in the field of business statistics (OJ L 271, 18.8.2020, pp. 1-170)
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1030 of 15 July 2020 laying down the technical specifications of data requirements for the topic ‘ICT usage and e-commerce’ for the reference year 2021, pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 227, 16.7.2020, pp. 12-20)
Regulation (EC) No 471/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 May 2009 on Community statistics relating to external trade with non-member countries and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1172/95 (OJ L 152, 16.6.2009, pp. 23-29)
Successive amendments to Regulation (EC) No 471/2009 have been incorporated into the original text. This consolidated version is of documentary value only.
Regulation (EC) No 295/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2008 concerning structural business statistics (recast) (OJ L 97, 9.4.2008, pp. 13-59)
See consolidated version.
Regulation (EC) No 177/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 February 2008 establishing a common framework for business registers for statistical purposes and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 2186/93 (OJ L 61, 5.3.2008, pp. 6-16)
Regulation (EC) No 716/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2007 on Community statistics on the structure and activity of foreign affiliates (OJ L 171, 29.6.2007, pp. 17-31)
See consolidated version.
Regulation (EC) No 808/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 concerning Community statistics on the information society (OJ L 143, 30.4.2004, pp. 49-55)
See consolidated version.
Regulation (EC) No 638/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on Community statistics relating to the trading of goods between Member States and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 3330/91 (OJ L 102, 7.4.2004, pp. 1-8)
See consolidated version.
Regulation (EC) No 48/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 December 2003 on the production of annual Community statistics on the steel industry for the reference years 2003-2009 (OJ L 7, 13.1.2004, pp. 1-6)
See consolidated version.
Decision No 1608/2003/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 July 2003 concerning the production and development of Community statistics on science and technology (OJ L 230, 16.9.2003, pp. 1-3)
Council Regulation (EC) No 1165/98 of 19 May 1998 concerning short-term statistics (OJ L 162, 5.6.1998, pp. 1-15)
See consolidated version.
Council Regulation (EEC) No 3924/91 of 19 December 1991 on the establishment of a Community survey of industrial production (OJ L 374, 31.12.1991, pp. 1-3)