The Data: Coverage, Periodicity, and Timeliness

Coverage characteristics

5.1.1 Statistical presentation

• The geographic coverage of the data is the Taiwan area of the Republic of China.

• Data are disseminated generally in millions of NT dollars on GDP at current prices and constant 2001 prices, together with the implicit deflators.

• The current and constant price estimates are compiled using both the production and the expenditure approaches. The full output-based GDP are disseminated showing a breakdown by productive activity as follows:

  • A breakdown by kind of economic activity into: agriculture, forestry, fishing and animal husbandry; mining and quarrying; manufacturing; electricity, gas and water; construction; trade; accommodation and eating-drinking places; transportation, storage and communication; finance and insurance; real estate, rental and leasing; professional, scientific and technical services; educational services; health care and social welfare services; cultural, sporting and recreational services; and other services.

  • The current and constant prices data are broken down by major expenditure category as follows: private consumption expenditure; government consumption expenditure; gross fixed capital formation; increase in inventories; and exports and imports of goods and services.

• The data are seasonally unadjusted.

• The data are based on the 1993 SNA.

Periodicity

Quarterly

Timeliness

Approximately seven to eight weeks after the end of the reference quarter.

Access by the Public

Advance dissemination of release calendar

5.1.3 Advance release calendar

A quarter-ahead advance release calendar showing the "no later than" release dates is published on the DGBAS website (http://win.dgbas.gov.tw/dgbas03/bs7/sdds/english/calendar.htm ), which is updated 4 weeks prior to the data release to show the precise release dates.

Simultaneous release to all interested parties

The data are released simultaneously to all interested parties by issuing a press release and on the national income website of National Statistics. The websites are listed as follows:

http://www.stat.gov.tw/lp.asp?ctNode=497&CtUnit=1077&BaseDSD=7 (in Chinese)

http://eng.stat.gov.tw/lp.asp?ctNode=2008&CtUnit=1016&BaseDSD=7 (in English)

Integrity

Dissemination of terms and conditions under which official statistics are produced, including ...
Confidentiality of individual responses

0.1.1 Responsibility for collecting, processing, and disseminating statistics

• All statistics collected, compiled and published by the DGBAS are governed by the Statistics Act and the Enforcement Rules.  

• The data on the national accounts are disseminated by the DGBAS as a service to the public.

Identification of internal government access to data before release

1.2.2 Internal governmental access to statistics prior to release

The information in the press release is provided, under strict embargo, to the Premier, the Vice Premier and the Secretary-General on the morning before official release.

Identification of ministerial commentary on the occasion of statistical releases

1.2.3 Attribution of statistical products

No ministerial commentary is released with these data. DGBAS provides its own analytical commentary with these data releases.

Provision of information about revision and advance notice of major changes in methodology

4.3.1 Revision schedule

Preliminary quarterly data are released in the following quarter, and revised in the next of the following quarter.

The first annual revision for a given year are released in November of the following year and the second revision will be released in November of the next of the following year.

Comprehensive revision will be released every 5 years.

1.2.4 Advance notice of major changes in methodology, source data, and statistical techniques.

Information on major changes in practices and re-basing is provided in the yearly report in which these changes are first introduced.

Quality

Dissemination of documentation on methodology and sources used in preparing statistics

5.2.1 Dissemination of documentation on concepts, scope, classifications, basis of recording, data sources, and statistical techniques

A description of the methodology is published in the Appendix of “ National Income in the Taiwan Area of the Republic of China”, available from the contact person.

Dissemination of  that support statistical cross-checks and provide assurance of reasonableness

4.2.1 Internal consistency

Quarterly national accounts are estimated independently from the production side and the expenditure side. This procedure enables cross-checks of both statistics. The results of the estimation are released after the discussion and examination of the National Income Statistics Evaluation Committee.