Financial systems and development

Exports of goods and nonfactor services represent the subitem fuel and power (for heating, lighting, cookvalue
of all goods and nonfactor services provided ing, air conditioning, and so forth). Note that this
to the rest of the world; they include merchandise, item excludes energy used for transport (rarely refreight,
insurance, travel, and other nonfactor ported to be more than 1 percent of total consumpservices.
The value of factor services, such as in- tion in low- and middle-income economies). As
vestment income, interest, and labor income, is mentioned above, medical care and education inexcluded.
clude government as well as private consumption
The resource balance is the difference between ex- expenditure. Transport and communication also inports
of goods and nonfactor services and imports cludes the purchase of motor cars, which are reof
goods and nonfactor services.
ported as a subitem. Other consumption, the resid-
Partially rebased 1980 series in constant domestic ual group, includes beverages and tobacco,
currency units (see above) are used to compute the nondurable household goods and household serindicators
in Table 8. Table 9 uses national accounts vices, recreational services, and services supplied
series in current domestic currency units. The by hotels and restaurants. It also includes the sepagrowth
rates in Table 8 are calculated from the con- rately reported subitem, other consumer durables,
stant 1980 price series; the shares of GDP in Table comprising household appliances, furniture, floor
9, from current price series. coverings, recreational equipment, and watches
The summary measures are calculated by the and jewelry.
method explained in the note for Tables 2 and 3. Estimating the structure of consumption is one
of the weakest aspects of national accounting in
Table 10. Structure of consumption
low- and middle-income economies. The structure
is estimated through household expenditure sur-
Percentage shares of selected items in total house- veys and similar survey techniques. It therefore
hold consumption expenditure are computed from shares any bias inherent in the sample frame or
SNA-defined details of GDP (expenditure at na- population. For example, some countries limit surtional
market prices), often as collected for Interna- veys to urban areas or, even more narrowly, to
tional Comparison Program (ICP) Phases IV (1980) capital cities. This tends to produce exceptionally
and V (1985). For countries not covered by the ICP, low shares for food and high shares for transport and
less detailed national accounts estimates are in- communication, gross rents, fuel and power, and other
cluded, where available. The intention is to consumption, which includes meals purchased outpresent
a general idea of the broad structure of side the home. Controlled food prices and incomconsumption.
The data cover 83 countries (five plete national accounting for subsistence activities
more than last year's edition, including Bank staff also contribute to low food shares.
estimates for China) and refer to the most recent
estimates, generally for a year between 1980 and Table 11. Central government
1985, inclusive. Where they refer to earlier years, expenditure
the figures are shown in italics. Consumption here
refers to private (nongovernment) consumption as The data on central government finance in Tables
defined in the SNA and in the notes to Tables 2, 4, 11 and 12 are from the IMF Government Finance
and 9, except that education and medical care com- Statistics Yearbook, 1988 and IMF data files. The acprise
government as well as private outlays. This counts of each country are reported using the sys-
ICP concept of "enhanced consumption" reflects tem of common definitions and classifications
who uses rather than who pays for consumption found in the IMF Manual on Government Finance
goods, and improves international comparability Statistics (1986).
because it is less sensitive to differing national For complete and authoritative explanations of
practices regarding the financing of health and ed- concepts, definitions, and data sources, see these
ucation services.
IMF sources. The commentary that follows is in-
A major subitem of food is presented: cereals and tended mainly to place these data in the context of
tubers. The subitem comprises the main staple the broad range of indicators reported in this ediproducts:
rice, flour, bread, all other cereals and tion.
cereal preparations, potatoes, yams, and other tu- The shares of total expenditure and revenue by
bers. For high-income OECD economies, however, category are calculated from series in national curthis
subitem does not include tubers. Gross rents, rencies. Because of differences in coverage of availfuel
and power consist of actual and imputed rents, able data, the individual components of central
and repair and maintenance charges, as well as the government expenditure and current revenue
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