Chile’s National Accounts
Development and Current Situation
Carmen Gloria Escobar
National Accounts Department
Central Bank of Chile
OCDE Working Party on National Accounts
Tour Europe, Paris La Défense
3-5 October, 2007
1
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Subjects
I.
Institutional framework and organization
II. Conceptual framework and main products
III. Publication and revision policy
IV. International assessment
V. Future agenda
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CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Institutional framework &
organization
3
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Institutional framework
4

In Chile, the institutional framework for producing
economic statistics is a shared responsibility between the
Central Bank of Chile and the National Statistics Bureau
(INE).

In the particular case of National Accounts, statistics are
compiled and disseminated by the Central Bank, in the
Statistical Information and Research office (GIIE).

Within the GIIE, the compiling unit is the National
Accounts Department (DCN).
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Organization

The DCN is a team of 35 professionals, mostly economists.

The DCN is organized into 7 working groups.
National
Accounts
Manufacturing
industries
Services
Sectors
Compilation process
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Institutional
Intersectorial
Short term
Consistency
process
OCTOBER 2007
Benchmark
compilation
Conceptual framework &
main products
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CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Conceptual framework
7

The DCN follows the recommendations of the 1993
National Accounts System (1993 SNA) as the general
framework for compiling the national accounts.

Implementing such framework has been a gradual
process since the last exercises that changed the base
year.

Chile’s national accounts are compiled on a fixed base
(2003 base).

Regarding classifiers, the ISIC Rev.3 and the CPC are
used. Implementation of COFOG and COICOP is under
way.
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Products


8
Complying with international standards, the DCN makes
follow-up compilations in various frequencies:

Benchmark compilations

Annual

Quarterly

Monthly Index of Economic Activity (IMACEC)
In addition, regional accounts are prepared, for each of
the regions the country is politically divided into.
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Benchmark compilation
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
The 2003 benchmark compilation is the fifth one to have
been developed in Chile. Previous base years were 1962,
1977, 1986 and 1996.

The compilation period has been reduced from ten (19861996) to seven years (1996-2003). Next measurement is
scheduled for 2008.

In benchmark compilations, special data collection is
carried out to cover economic areas that do not have
permanent information.
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Benchmark compilation
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
Aggregate information on products and activities was
structured into the Supply and Use Tables.

The system
products.

In turn, information on institutional units is organized
into the integrated economic accounts.
contains
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
73
economic
OCTOBER 2007
activities
and
Annual national accounts
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
The full National Accounts scheme is developed, with the
exception of balance sheets.

The sources of information are administrative records,
economic surveys, financial statements, yearbooks and
diverse statistical reports and figures.

Compilation methods depend on the sector’s
characteristics and available sources of information.

Publication is done for 26 activities and products.
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Annual national accounts
12

Regarding integrated economic accounts, they are
published for the following sectors: financial and nonfinancial institutions, general government, households
and private non-profit institutions serving households
and the rest of the world.

These are broken down by institutional unit or group,
itemized by production, income and expenditure,
capital, and financial transactions statements in an
integrated manner.
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Quarterly national accounts
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
These are based on production indicators that extrapolate the
various components of the 2003 benchmark compilation,
which are adjusted to annual accounts through the method of
temporal disaggregation proposed by Denton.

Supply-Use Tables are balanced at a level of 33 products and
activities, and the publication is made at a level of 22
economic activities.

Sources of information

Origin: Basic sources of information are production
indicators by sector, as well as foreign trade data.

Expenditure: Basic sources of information are indicators
for consumption and sales, imported machinery,
engineering works survey, inventory survey and
Customs data for foreign trade.
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
IMACEC
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
The Imacec is a synthetic indicator of monthly production by all
economic sectors combined, at constant prices.

It is a proxy for GDP variations.

The Imacec is compiled from 73 productive sectors. However,
only the aggregate is published.

The Imacec is estimated through an accounting approach, using
a Laspeyres volume index obtained by taking integrals of
monthly production indexes from relevant industries, according
to the structure of base year 2003.

Both the original series and the seasonally-adjusted series are
published.
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Regional accounts
15

Regional accounts are prepared only for the production
side. Gross Regional Production Value (VBPR) and
Regional
Intermediate
Consumption
(CIR)
are
estimated, which yield the Regional Value Added (VAR)
by difference and only for the benchmark year.

Accounting and fiscal information is used together with
direct surveys to producers and general statistical
sources.

For follow-up, the base year’s VAR is extrapolated by
regional quantum indexes, keeping the base year’s
CIR/VBPR ratio.
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OCTOBER 2007
Publication and revision
policy
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OCTOBER 2007
Publication and revision policy

A revision policy exists that is public and with pre-determined
dates, which are consistent with quarterly and annual
publications.
Every 5 years
Benchmark compilation
Benchmark
2003
Annual
2003
Quarterly
Monthly
1
2
Estimated compilation (Benchmark year 2003)
Benchmark compilation
2008
…
3
4
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
12
2006
1
2
2007
3
4
1
2
2008
3
4
2
3
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Publication: 2 years
and 10 months lag
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1
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
4
12
Publication and revision policy

A revision policy exists that is public and with pre-determined
dates, which are consistent with quarterly and annual
publications.
Benchmark compilation
Benchmark
2003
Annual
2003
Quarterly
Monthly
1
2
Estimated compilation (Benchmark year 2003)
2008
…
3
4
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
12
2006
1
2
2007
3
4
1
2
2008
3
4
1
2
3
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
-Publication: March of each year.
-Series available from 1960 onwards
-Three
versions:
preliminar,
provisional and revised
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Benchmark compilation
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
Preliminary
version
2007
Provisional
version
2006
OCTOBERRevised
2007
version 2005
4
12
Publication and revision policy

A revision policy exists that is public and with pre-determined
dates, which are consistent with quarterly and annual
publications.
Benchmark compilation
Benchmark
2003
Annual
2003
Quarterly
Monthly
1
2
Estimated compilation (Benchmark year 2003)
2008
…
3
4
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
12
2006
1
2
2007
3
4
1
2
2008
3
4
1
2
3
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Series available:
From 1986 onwards
(at constant prices).
From 1990 onwards
(at current prices)
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Benchmark compilation
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
Publication:
53
days after closure
of
benchmark
quarter
OCTOBER 2007
4
12
Publication and revision policy

A revision policy exists that is public and with pre-determined
dates, which are consistent with quarterly and annual
publications.
Benchmark compilation
Benchmark
2003
Annual
2003
Quarterly
Monthly
1
2
Estimated compilation (Benchmark year 2003)
2008
…
3
4
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
12
2006
1
2
2007
3
4
1
2
2008
3
4
1
2
3
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Series
available from
1986 onwards
20
Benchmark compilation
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
35 days after
closure of
benchmark
month
OCTOBER 2007
4
12
International assessment
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CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
International assessment:
2003 Benchmark compilation
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
4 - 17 January 2006: An IMF mission aimed at analyzing
and evaluating works associated with the 2003 benchmark
compilation and the implementation strategy used.

The mission used the guidelines of the Data Quality
Assessment Framework (DQAF), which is based on the
methodology used to assess the Reports on the
Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSC).

Positive general assessment, with minor observations to
specific treatments: dwelling, repairs, natural growth in
agricultural crops, fixed capital consumption.
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
International assessment:
National Accounts
23

18 April to 2 May 2007: IMF mission aimed at preparing
a Report on the Observance of Standards and Codes in
the area of macroeconomic statistics (ROSC-Data
Module). Said report considers the IMF’s assessment
framework DQAF.

Favorable IMF assessment.
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
International assessment:
National Accounts
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CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
International assessment:
National Accounts
 “The
degree of advancement of Chilean national
accounts is higher than that of emerging economies,
and lower than that of advanced economies.”
 Main recommendations:
100
90
ECO. AVANZADAS
80
CHILE
 Establish user consultation
70
60
ECO. EMERGENTES
50
40
30
20
10
0
O
25
LO
LNO
NO
O
LO
LNO
NO
O
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
LO
LNO
NO
mechanisms
 Complete 1993 SNA
implementation
 Improve source data quality
 Improve retropolation
techniques
OCTOBER 2007
Future agenda
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CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Future agenda

27
Actions in progress, 2007:

Preparation of new 2008 benchmark compilation

Implementation of Quarterly financial accounts

Assessment
of
statistical
retropolation of series

Revision and extension of inventory survey

Creation of user contact points to answer questions
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
methods
OCTOBER 2007
for
the
Future agenda

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Actions contemplated
compilation:
in
the
2008
benchmark

Deepening the application of 1993 SNA

Assessment of the reclassification of some mining
products

Greater itemization in processing and publication of
products and activities

Evaluation of the adoption of national accounts
measurement at constant prices using chain indices

Enhance joint works with the INE
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007
Chile’s National Accounts
Development and Current Situation
Carmen Gloria Escobar
National Accounts Department
Central Bank of Chile
OCDE Working Party on National Accounts
Tour Europe, Paris La Défense
3-5 October, 2007
29
CENTRAL BANK OF CHILE
OCTOBER 2007