Assessing the Feasibility of Micro-Data Access Options for SBS

1. Assessing the Feasibility of Micro-Data AccessOptions for SBS Nadim Ahmad, Statistics Directorate, OECD

2. Background • Increasing desire for micro-data access in analysis and policy formulation, accelerated by cheaper and faster computer power ......which in turn have increased capacity and potential for NSOs to provide access. • ‘Conservative’ rules relating to access however have led users to conduct own surveys = additional costs on users & respondents, and, so, the economy, which are often of lower quality than micro-data held by NSOs = risks of inappropriate policy measures & of NSOs being overtaken by events or marginalised.

3. The OECD’s Feasibility Study - Options • Overview • Snap shot indicators • Longitudinal indicators • Bilateral projects • Remote Access • Transmission of micro-data • Accessing private data sets

4. Tentative Conclusions • That the OECD should utilise networks to collect/construct indicators based on micro-data (Options I and II) • With a view to considering remote access solutions for the medium/longer term. • Creating a meta-data bank of micro-data, relating in the first instance to business statistics

5. Implications for business statisticians • For the OECD to develop with NSOs/analysts a list of indicators that could be produced without compromising confidentiality. • E.g. for business statistics providing information relating to distributions, variances, standard deviations. Kurtosis, medians: broken down by size class, ISIC.

6. Current Indicators • Turnover • Production at producers’ prices and/or factor costs • Value added at basic prices and/or factor costs • Gross operating surplus • Total purchases of goods and services • Change in stocks of goods and services • Purchases of energy products • Gross investment in tangible goods • Gross investment in land • Gross investment in existing buildings and structures • Gross investment in machinery and equipment • Sales of tangible investment goods • Employment, number of persons engaged and number of employees • Employment, number of females employees • Employment, number of employees in full time equivalent units • Hours worked by employees • Compensation of labour, all persons engaged and employees • Wages and salaries, all persons engaged and employees • Other employers’ social contributions, employees • Number of enterprises and/or establishments

7. Composite indicators • Extending the distribution statistics to composite indicators: • (Hirschman-Herfindhal) concentration indices; • Labour productivity, (arguably maximum and minimums too). • Labour/Capital ratios, (maximum and minimums); • Labour productivity growth; • Standard regression coefficients, for example linking output to labour and capital using KLEMS’ type production functions; • Operating surplus/employment ratios; • Turnover/Output ratios; • Social contributions % of total compensation; • New high-growth measures (session 2b); Growth more generally • Brainstorming (quartiles etc, higher ISIC aggregates, foreign ownership, exports, imports)

8. Commercial Sources – Proposal • Investigation of Amadeus/Orbis • Tentative conclusions are that these are useful sources for micro-data analysis • But issues relate to representivity • Proposal is to benchmark (and gross-up) Amadeus data to SBS statistics on basis of size, ISIC, legal form and location – (views on feasibility, obstacles etc)