Structural Business Statistics Research Articles

Exploring the structural effects of the ICT sector in the Greek economy: A quantitative approach based on input-output and network analysis

The aim of this paper is to present a quantification approach for the calculation of the ICT sector's structural effects in the economy, focusing on the case of Greece. We construct a composite sector using a hypothetical extraction methodology based on the most recent Greek input-output table and structural business statistics at the national level. Our framework builds on the formal definition of the ICT sector provided by OECD and includes two distinct sub-components, ICT manufacturing and ICT services. In the second stage of this study, we explore the production linkages among ICT services, ICT manufacturing and the rest of the Greek industries using input-output-based and network analysis-based metrics that build on the intermediate transactions of an expanded input-output table of the Greek economy that includes the two sectors. Our empirical findings suggest that the total ICT sector has a major contribution to the Greek economy in terms of GDP and employment, but this is driven mainly by the ICT services component. We further identify that ICT services are more integrated in the Greek production network compared to ICT manufacturing, but their production linkages are underperforming in terms of meaningful contribution to the activity of the rest of the sectors. These results reflect the low integration of digital technologies and can be further embedded in a discussion on the ICT deficiencies of the Greek economy and the need for targeted regulatory and financial interventions.

Does Investing in Renewable Energy Sources Contribute to Growth? A Preliminary Study on Greece’s National Energy and Climate Plan

As more economies are transitioning away from fossil fuels for their electricity production and towards greener alternatives, many socioeconomic implications of this shift remain actively debated. The present paper attempts to assess the economic impact of investments in renewable energy sources (RESs) for Greece and whether the broader effects of this transition can offset the negative impact that will occur due to the targeted phase-out of lignite plants by 2028, which constitute the predominant power source for Greece. Our methodological approach builds on input–output analysis and the creation of composite RES industries for the estimation of the net effects of a series of monetary shocks that correspond to Greece’s phase-out investment plan, utilizing the most recent national input–output tables and satellite structural business statistics. We focus on the structural effects of these shocks on a series of socioeconomic indicators, including GDP, employment, wages, government income (through taxes), and capital formation. The results indicate that even though lignite power production still provides a significant contribution to the Greek economy, investing in renewables presents a significant opportunity for value added and job creation.

Innovation intensity and skills in firms across five European countries

This study attempts to establish the importance of specific formally achieved higher skills for the innovation intensity in firms across a group of European countries. Innovation expenditures are calculated as the ratio to turnover and the main explanatory variable is the proportion of highly skilled employees (tertiary education in ICT-oriented or other fields). The analysis employs official data on innovation activities (Community Innovation Survey) in firms for the period 2004–2010, linked to registers on education and businesses as well as to the Structural Business Statistics including 34,000 observations. Estimation results show a strong significantly positive relationship between the innovation intensity and the proportion of highly ICT skilled employees. Higher skills outside the field of ICT are also important for the innovation activities. Control variables reveal that the innovation intensity significantly increases with joint national and EU funding while the role of firm age varies. The significant and negative link to firm size reveals a lack of advantages of scale, a finding possibly related to the use of a comprehensive measure of innovation activities. There are also indications that industry affiliation is essential for the innovation intensity.

MEASURING THE EFFECTS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE REGIONS IN BULGARIA

The aim of the study is to measure the effects in the economic development of the regions in Bulgaria. To achieve this aim, Eurostat data for the period 2014-2018 are used for the following indicators by NUTS 2 regions: Gross domestic product (GDP) at current market prices, Gross fixed capital formation, Compensation of employees, Inactive persons (%), Population and Households with access to the internet at home, Economical indicator for structural business statistics. The methodological framework of the study covers the use of the following statistical methods: stepwise regression, panel regression with fixed and random effect. The results of the study focus on the interpretation of the established cross-sectional and time-series effects.

Developments of Economic Growth and Employment in Bioeconomy Sectors across the EU

The development of the bioeconomy—or the substitution of fossil-based materials and energy by bio-based solutions—is considered a strategic economic orientation by the European Commission and its Green Deal. This paper presents a methodology to monitor the contribution of the bioeconomy to jobs and growth within the European Union (EU) and its Member States. Classified as an ‘‘output-based’’ approach, the methodology relies on expert estimations of the biomass content of the bio-based materials produced in the EU and the subsequent calculation of ‘‘sectoral’’ bio-based shares by using Eurostat statistics on the production of manufactured goods (prom). Sectoral shares are applied to indicators of employment, and value added is reported in Eurostat–Structural business statistics. This paper updates the methodology and time series presented in 2018. The bioeconomy of the EU (post-Brexit composition) employed around 17.5 million people and generated €614 billion of value added in 2017. The study evidences structural differences between EU national bioeconomies, which become more pronounced over time, especially in terms of the level of apparent labour productivity of national bioeconomies. Finally, this paper describes cases of transition over the 2008–2017 period.

Issues in Tourism Statistics: A Critical Review

The purpose of this paper is a discussion of some major concepts and operational definitions involved in tourism statistics within Regulation 692/2011, with a cross-country comparison and an in-depth look at the Italian case. Data and information are derived from main documents of major international and national institutions and Eurostat metadata. Both demand-side and supply-side data sources on tourism are discussed. The work highlights the main differences in the data production processes of different EU countries, although they follow the same regulation. The main critical points are: the definition of usual environment and survey design for the demand-side data, as well as the statistical unit for the supply-side data, which does not coincide with that used in structural business statistics. The analysis is limited to those EU countries with complete available Eurostat metadata. Moreover, only household surveys relating to trips and vacations are considered for demand-side data (border surveys are not treated). The main contribution is concerned with the description of the current situation in the production of tourism statistics, by looking and their comparability for cross-country analyses and at the possibility of their integration and reconciliation in the perspective of building a system of tourism statistics.

Evaluation of robust outlier detection methods for zero-inflated complex data

ABSTRACTOutlier detection can be seen as a pre-processing step for locating data points in a data sample, which do not conform to the majority of observations. Various techniques and methods for outlier detection can be found in the literature dealing with different types of data. However, many data sets are inflated by true zeros and, in addition, some components/variables might be of compositional nature. Important examples of such data sets are the Structural Earnings Survey, the Structural Business Statistics, the European Statistics on Income and Living Conditions, tax data or – as in this contribution – household expenditure data which are used, for example, to estimate the Purchase Power Parity of a country.In this work, robust univariate and multivariate outlier detection methods are compared by a complex simulation study that considers various challenges included in data sets, namely structural (true) zeros, missing values, and compositional variables. These circumstances make it difficult or impossible to flag true outliers and influential observations by well-known outlier detection methods.Our aim is to assess the performance of outlier detection methods in terms of their effectiveness to identify outliers when applied to challenging data sets such as the household expenditures data surveyed all over the world. Moreover, different methods are evaluated through a close-to-reality simulation study. Differences in performance of univariate and multivariate robust techniques for outlier detection and their shortcomings are reported. We found that robust multivariate methods outperform robust univariate methods. The best performing methods in finding the outliers and in providing a low false discovery rate were found to be the generalized S estimators (GSE), the BACON-EEM algorithm and a compositional method (CoDa-Cov). In addition, these methods performed also best when the outliers are imputed based on the corresponding outlier detection method and indicators are estimated from the data sets.

Development of Entrepreneurial Activity in the Czech Republic over the Years 2005–2017

Although there is a rich debate about entrepreneurship and its impact on economic development, much less is known about the actual levels of entrepreneurial activity. The main aim of the article is, thus, to map the level of entrepreneurial activity in the Czech Republic, its structure, and development during the years 2005–2017. The study is based on the secondary data obtained from national structural business statistics, the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, and the Labour Force Survey. The average rate of entrepreneurial activity in the Czech Republic was 15.2% of the economically active population aged 15–64 years during the analysed period. The activity is dominated by solo-self-employed workers (own-account workers). Job creators represent only 3.2% of the economically active population. Patterns and cohorts of entrepreneurs were identified regarding gender, age, and education. There were 2.5 times more self-employed males compared to females for the past years, and the proportion of job creators is also higher for males. The Czech job creators are on average older (mostly represented in age cohort 40–49 years) compared to solo-self-employed (mainly represented in age cohort 35–44 years) and they have obtained tertiary education to a larger extent. Classification and monitoring of the Czech entrepreneurial activity might serve as an overview for Czech policymakers and regional scholars. Especially from a job creation perspective, it might be very relevant to understand the characteristics of those individuals who employ other workers, aside from themselves. From an international perspective, this study might serve as an inspiration to shed more light on the national levels of entrepreneurship and self-employment.

The Micro Data Linking-Panel: A Combined Firm Dataset

Abstract The following article informs about the Micro Data Linking-Panel (hereafter MDL-Panel), a new firm In German business statistics the statistical unit, or firm, is currently referred to as the smallest legally independent unit which keeps accounts for commercial and/or tax purposes. dataset, available since May 2018 via the Research Data Centre of the Federal Statistical Office and the Research Data Centre of the Statistical Offices of the Federal States (RDC) (Forschungsdatenzentren der Statistischen Ämter des Bundes und der Länder (2018a, 2018b). The dataset originates from two projects funded by Eurostat over the period 2014 to 2016 with the title “Micro data linking of structural business statistics and other business statistics” (MDL). The projects combined data of various business statistics for the reference years 2008 to 2013 and were aimed at offering new perspectives on business statistics topics, which are not addressed in the ordinary publication program. Furthermore, MDL served to gain insights about the involved methodological challenges of linked data in Official Statistics. The first chapter provides background information on the projects funded by Eurostat. Chapter 2 contrasts the contents of the MDL-Panel to other products available via the RDC. The third chapter describes the scope of the dataset and its content in more detail. The article closes with future prospects for the MDL-Panel.

AN ANALYSIS OF FOODSERVICE AND ACCOMMODATION INDUSTRY IN EUROPE USING SECONDARY STATISTICS

The foodservice and accommodation industry makes a major contribution to the European economy. This industry has been particularly chosen for a study because it is an important and extremely competitive and dynamic industry, which is characterized by continuous transformation. The article presents an overview and analysis of the foodservice and accommodation industry in countries in the European Union (EU) to assess its importance in the European economic system. Secondary sources of information were used to reach the scope of the paper. The analysis presented in this article is based on the main dataset for structural business statistics (SBS), size class data and regional data. The research period was the years 2010 – 2014. A comparative method was applied for the analysis of collected data and materials. In this research, industrial analysis was used, which was a statistical analysis of the size, demographic, and other economic dimensions of any industry of an economy. Findings show that this industry contributes to job creation and economic growth in favorable times but the support of decision–makers, legal and fiscal rules is needed if the hospitality industry must be considered for a key driver for welfare and sustainability in Europe.

A Study of Small Area Estimation for Italian Structural Business Statistics

Abstract The Frame SBS is a statistical register which has been developed at the Italian National Statistical Institute to support the annual estimation of structural business statistics (SBS). Actually, a number of core SBS are estimated by combining microdata directly supplied by different administrative sources. In this context, more accurate estimates for those SBS that are not covered by administrative sources can be obtained through small area estimation (SAE). In this article, we illustrate an application of SAE methods in the framework of the Frame SBS register in order to assess the potential advantages that can be achieved in terms of increased quality and reliability of the target variables. Different types of auxiliary information and approaches are compared in order to identify the optimal estimation strategy in terms of precision of the estimates.

The green investments and competitiveness of the Italian manufacturing system

Purpose of the paper : This paper aims to verify whether investments in climate change mitigation and adaptation would result in sectoral gains in relation to the way in which resources are allocated and used, thus potentially contributing to the competitiveness of Italian manufacturing firms. Methodology : We carried out an econometric analysis on a data set drawn from the annual Istat Structural Business Statistics (SBS) with specific reference to manufacturing sectors based on their size class during the middle years of the economic crisis (2009-2012). Findings : We find that expenditures in climate change mitigation and adaptation have positive and significant effects on business performance in terms of labour productivity over the whole period considered. Research limits : Some limitations apply to this study. The relationship between investments in environmental technologies and different measures of economic performance should be explored, possibly from a comparative perspective. Additional research is also needed to explore firm-level environmental behaviours in order to bring out potential heterogeneity and difference in economic performances. Practical implications : Our results are in line with the hypothesis that firms having environmental concerns and devoting substantial resources to green technologies may also improve their economic performance and competitiveness. Evidence from this study also indicates that there is great potential in adopting more proactive environmental strategies other than compliance-driven ones. From this perspective, the so-called Paris Agreement creates huge market opportunities at a global level. Originality of the paper : Several studies have recently attempted to assess the effects of the decarbonisation process on business performance and industrial competitiveness. This paper brings new insights into the economic effects of environmental activities and green management by focusing on the relationship between investments in green technologies and productivity, still regarded as the foundation of industrial competitiveness.

Statistical Estimators Using Jointly Administrative and Survey Data to Produce French Structural Business Statistics

Abstract Using as much administrative data as possible is a general trend among most national statistical institutes. Different kinds of administrative sources, from tax authorities or other administrative bodies, are very helpful material in the production of business statistics. However, these sources often have to be completed by information collected through statistical surveys. This article describes the way Insee has implemented such a strategy in order to produce French structural business statistics. The originality of the French procedure is that administrative and survey variables are used jointly for the same enterprises, unlike the majority of multisource systems, in which the two kinds of sources generally complement each other for different categories of units. The idea is to use, as much as possible, the richness of the administrative sources combined with the timeliness of a survey, even if the latter is conducted only on a sample of enterprises. One main issue is the classification of enterprises within the NACE nomenclature, which is a cornerstone variable in producing the breakdown of the results by industry. At a given date, two values of the corresponding code may coexist: the value of the register, not necessarily up to date, and the value resulting from the data collected via the survey, but only from a sample of enterprises. Using all this information together requires the implementation of specific statistical estimators combining some properties of the difference estimators with calibration techniques. This article presents these estimators, as well as their statistical properties, and compares them with those of other methods.

OECD Structural Analysis Databases: Sectoral Principles in the Study of Markets for Goods and Services

This study focuses on the characteristics of the information database of the OECD structural business statistics in the analysis of markets of goods and services, and macroeconomic trends. The system of indicators of structural statistics is presented in OECD publications and on-line access to a wide range of users. Collected data sources generated by the OECD offices are based on the national statistical offices of country-members, Russia and the BRICS. Data on the development of economic sectors are calculated according to the methodology of individual countries, regional and international standards: annual national accounts of countries, annual industry and business surveys, methodology of short-term indicators, statistics of international trade in goods. Data are aggregated on the basis of complex indicators statements of the enterprises' questionnaire and business surveys. Information system of structural statistics which is available and continuously updated, has certain features. It is composed of several subsystems: Structural Statistics on Industry and Services, EU entrepreneurship statistics, Indicators of Industry and Services, International Trade in Commodities Statistics. The grouping of industries is based on the International standard industrial classification of all economic activities (ISIC). Classification of foreign trade flows is made in accordance with the Harmonized system of description and coding of goods. The structural statistics databases comprise four classes of industries' grouping according to the technology intensity. The paper discusses the main reasons for the non-comparability of data in the subsystems in certain time intervals.

Employment Effects of Technological and Organizational Innovations: Evidence Based on Linked Firm-Level Data for Austria

Summary This paper investigates the impact of technological and organizational innovations on subsequent employment growth using a standard labour demand model. The main novelty of the paper is the use of a unique dataset, which merges the Community Innovation Survey (CIS) 2006 for Austria with structural business statistics from 2006-2008, resulting in 3,070 firm observations. For manufacturing firms, quantile regressions show that product innovations lagged two-years have a significantly positive but decreasing impact on employment growth over the conditional distribution given the impact of output and wage growth. For service firms, the positive employment effect of product innovations can only be observed for firms with high conditional employment growth rates. Results are robust with respect to the measurement of product innovations (e.g. market novelties or new to firm products). Process innovations exhibit a negative impact at the higher quantiles indicating that process innovations lead to an increase in labour productivity at the expense of employment. Furthermore organizational and marketing innovations do not have a significant impact on subsequent employment growth across the different quantiles.

The Use of Exhaustive Micro-Data Firm Databases for Economic Geography: The Issues of Geocoding and Usability in the Case of the Amadeus Database

Economic geography has begun to explore the options involved in micro-data. New databases have become available and new techniques and an increase in computer power allow their treatment. However, two major issues impede the use of these datasets: the lack of geocoded spatial location and lack of exhaustivity in coverage. In this article, I explore the possibilities of using large micro-scale firm databases for economic geography in Europe. I show that current evolution in European official spatial data dissemination alows for geocoding of such databases using means that are accessible for researchers with minimal programming knowledge. For the specific case of the Amadeus database of the Bureau Van Dijk, I show that its limitations in terms of coverage have to be taken into acount, but do not hinder its use for analysis. Resulting maps show how the data allows to go further than classic databases such as the Eurostat Structural Business Statistics.

Macro-Integration for Solving Large Data Reconciliation Problems

Macro-integration technique is a well established method forreconciliation of large, high-dimensional tables, especially applied to macroeconomic data at national statistical oces (NSO). This technique is mainly used when data obtained from dierent sources should be reconciled on a macro level. New areas of applications for this technique arise as new data sources become available to NSO's. Often these new data sources cannot be combined on a micro level, while macro integration could provide a solution for such problems. Yet, more research should be carried out to investigate if in such situations macro integration could indeed be applied. In this paper we propose two applications of macro-integration techniques in other domains than the traditional macro-economic applications. In particular: reconciliation of tables of a virtual census and reconciliation of monthly series of short term statistics gures with the quarterly gures of structural business statistics.

The impact of new goods and service products on firm growth: evidence from Austrian-linked firm-level data

Using a matched innovation survey and structural business statistics, we investigate the impact of the introduction of new service products and other types of technological innovations on firm growth measured as subsequent two-year employment growth. Results, based on median and robust regression methods for manufacturing firms, show that, on average, both the introduction of new goods and process innovations have a significant and positive impact on subsequent firm growth. In contrast, the introduction of new services does not, on average, have a significant impact on firm growth for both manufacturing and service firms. However, quantile regressions show that the introduction of new service products has a significant and positive impact on firm growth for high-growth service firms. Finally, in manufacturing, the introduction of product innovations has a positive impact on firm growth at both the lower and higher ends of distribution (i.e. for both high-growth and shrinking firms).

190 SHEcan - Methodology for exposure assessment: Making the most of limited data

IntroductionThe prevalence and level of exposure for each assessed agent was estimated for every European member state and relevant industry. These estimates provided the basis for the heath impact assessment....

Technological determinants of entrepreneurship performance: Evidence from OECD countries

In this paper we acknowledge the role of technology as an engine in fostering entrepreneurship. We examine the technological determinants of entrepreneurship performance in twenty three developed OECD countries during the period 2000-2007 using two measures of entrepreneurship performance: the number of newly registered corporations, which is introduced by the World Bank Group Entrepreneurship Survey (2008), and the number of new enterprises, which is introduced by the OECD Structural and Demographic Business Statistics. Results of the mixed-effects model suggest a positive and significant relationship between the intensity of cellular phones, patent applications, and computer and communications services on entrepreneurship performance while the impact of personal computers ownership is found to be inconclusive. Key words: Entrepreneurship performance, technological changes, patents, mixed-effects model, OECD countries.