REGIONAL COOPERATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION
REGIONAL COOPERATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION
REGIONAL COOPERATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION
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e on a basis compatible with EBOPS for services and according to the Harmonized System<br />
for trade in goods, to facilitate comparisons with resident/non-resident trade classified on<br />
this basis.<br />
In developing FATS, there are two basic approaches. The first is to conduct surveys that<br />
directly request information on the operations of resident affiliates of foreign firms and<br />
foreign affiliates of domestic firms. The second, which can be used only for inward FATS,<br />
is to identify the subset of existing data on resident enterprises that is accounted for by<br />
foreign-owned firms. Links to existing domestic statistics should also be used as a source<br />
of information on FATS.<br />
Foreign Affiliates Trade Statistics are in the early stage of development. However, their<br />
collection and dissemination are taking an increasing importance at Eurostat, the OECD<br />
and the UNCTAD. An initial step towards international harmonization of basic concepts<br />
and definitions was taken via MSITS. This and other mentioned concepts have been<br />
accepted internationally, but they need to be supplemented and extended. A major difficulty<br />
involves data comparability, where numerous problems consists. There are many factors<br />
which most frequently affect the international comparability of data and also comparability<br />
between data from different national sources. The latest important step is the adoption of<br />
EU Regulation No 716/2007 on Community statistics on the structure and activity of foreign<br />
affiliates (European Communities, 2007) that is the legal framework according to which<br />
member states are required to provide inward and outward FATS to Eurostat starting from<br />
2008 onwards, which was until then carried out on voluntary basis.<br />
CONCLUSIONS<br />
SOME ASPECTS OF TRADE STATISTICS <strong>AND</strong> REPORTING<br />
Contemporary concept of foreign trade statistics observe only the flow of goods and services<br />
across national borders. The activities of transnational companies are largely statisticaly<br />
unobserved except in the mode 3 of international trade of services. The second half of<br />
the 20th century, especially the period after 1990, is characterized by the rising role of<br />
transnational companies and their affiliates in international trade. The analysis in the paper<br />
shows that nowadays firms deliver goods and services to foreign markets more through<br />
their foreign direct investment operations (international production in foreign affiliates)<br />
than through traditional forms of international cross-border trade – export and import. The<br />
activities of TNCs have changed the structure and the way of performing of international<br />
trade. Traditional foreign trade statistics are not adequate any more as a tool for facilitating<br />
trade policy decision making.<br />
New concept of analysis of international trade, and the new statistical framework for foreign<br />
trade derived from it, define export of countries more broadly so it does not include only<br />
direct export but also includes the foreign sales of the affiliates of parent companies of that<br />
country in the host country and all other countries. But this export, under new concept, does<br />
not include export that foreign controlled affiliates made from the observed country. In the<br />
paper we proposed approaches and guidance on how to minimize the effects of distortions<br />
in the compiling of statistical data on international trade transactions caused by the activities<br />
of transnational companies. The main tool is the new concept of the international trade<br />
statistics known as Foreign Affiliate Trade Statistics (FATS). FATS is in the early stage<br />
but its adoption and implementation in national foreign trade statistics and its international<br />
harmonization will lead to a more comprehensive picture of the world economy and world<br />
trade which captures the flows between parent companies and their affiliates.<br />
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