Use and Origin of Resources
Domestic Prices/Deflators
Monetary Indicators
Government Deficit or Surplus
Foreign trade
Balance of Payments
External Debt
Social Indicators

 GNP per capita is the gross national product, converted to U.S. dollars using the World Bank Atlas method, divided by the midyear population.

Population is a World Bank estimate for mid-year population, based, in most cases, on a de facto definition, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship. Note, however, that refugees not permanently settled in the country of asylum are generally considered to be part of the population of their country of origin. Population numbers are either current census data or historical census data extrapolated through certain demographic models.

Use and Origin of Resources

Gross national product is the sum of gross value added by all resident producers plus any taxes (less subsidies) that are not included in the valuation of output plus net receipts of primary income (employee compensation and property income) from nonresident sources.

Net income from abroad includes the net labor income and net property and entrepreneurial income components of the U.N. System of National Accounts. Labor income covers compensation of employees paid to nonresident workers. Property and entrepreneurial income covers investment income from the ownership of foreign financial claims (interest, dividends, rent, etc.) and nonfinancial property income (patents, copyrights, etc.).

GDP at market prices measures the total output of goods and services for final use occurring within the domestic territory of a given country, regardless of the allocation to domestic and foreign claims. Gross domestic product at purchaser values (market prices) is the sum of gross value added by all resident and nonresident producers in the economy plus any taxes and minus any subsidies not included in the value of the products. It is calculated without making deductions for depreciation of fabricated assets or for depletion and degradation of natural resources.

Resource balance shows exports of goods and services less imports of goods and services.

Exports and imports of goods and services represent the value of all goods and other market services provided to the world. Included is the value of merchandise, freight, insurance, travel, and other nonfactor services. Factor and property income (formerly called factor services), such as investment income, interest, and labor income, is excluded.

Domestic absorption is the sum of private consumption, general government consumption and gross domestic investment.

Private consumption is the market value of all goods and services, including durable products (such as cars, washing machines, and home computers) purchased or received as income in kind by households and nonprofit institutions. It excludes purchases of dwellings but includes imputed rent for owner-occupied dwellings. This estimate of private consumption includes any statistical discrepancy in the use of resources.

General government consumption includes all current spending for purchases of goods and services (including wages and salaries) by all levels of government, excluding most government enterprises. It also includes most expenditures on national defense and security.

Gross domestic investment consists of outlays on additions to the fixed assets of the economy plus net changes in the level of inventories. Fixed assets include land improvements (fences, ditches, drains, and so on); plant, machinery, and equipment purchases; and the construction of roads, railways, and the like, including commercial and industrial buildings, offices, schools, hospitals, and private residential dwellings. Inventories are stocks of goods held by firms to meet temporary or unexpected fluctuations in production or sales.

Fixed investment comprises all outlays (purchases and own-account production) on additions of new and imported durable goods to the stocks of fixed assets, less the proceeds of net sales (sales less purchases) of similar secondhand and scrapped goods. Outlays by general government on durable goods primarily for military purposes are excluded. According to the SNA, these outlays are treated as current consumption and classified under government consumption.

Net indirect taxes are the sum of indirect taxes less subsidies. Indirect taxes are those taxes payable by producers that relate to the production, sale, purchase or use of the goods and services. Subsidies are grants on the current account made by general government to private enterprises and unincorporated public enterprises. The grants may take the form of payments to ensure a guaranteed price or to enable maintenance of prices of goods and services below costs of production, and other forms of assistance to producers.

GDP at factor cost is derived as the sum of the value added in the agriculture, industry and services sectors. If the value added of these sectors is calculated at purchaser values (market prices), GDP at factor cost is derived by subtracting net indirect taxes from GDP at purchaser values (market prices).

Agriculture measures the output of the agricultural sector (ISIC divisions 1-5) less the value of intermediate inputs. Agriculture comprises value added from forestry, hunting, and fishing as well as cultivation of crops and livestock production. Data are in current local currency. Value added is the net output of a sector after adding up all outputs and subtracting intermediate inputs. It is calculated without making deductions for depreciation of fabricated assets or depletion and degradation of natural resources. The industrial origin of value added is determined by the International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC), revision 2.

Industry corresponds to ISIC divisions 10-45 and includes manufacturing (ISIC divisions 15-37). It comprises value added in mining, manufacturing (also reported as a separate subgroup), construction, electricity, water, and gas. Data are in current local currency. Value added is the net output of a sector after adding up all outputs and subtracting intermediate inputs. It is calculated without making deductions for depreciation of fabricated assets or depletion and degradation of natural resources. The industrial origin of value added is determined by the International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC), revision 2.

Manufacturing refers to industries belonging to divisions 15-37 in the International Standard Industrial Classification, rev. 2. Value added in manufacturing is the sum of gross output, less the value of intermediate goods consumed in production. Data are in current local currency. Value added is the net output of a sector after adding up all outputs and subtracting intermediate inputs. It is calculated without making deductions for depreciation of fabricated assets or depletion and degradation of natural resources. The industrial origin of value added is determined by the International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC), revision 2.

Services correspond to ISIC divisions 50-99. They include value added in wholesale and retail trade (including hotels and restaurants), transport, and government, financial, professional, and personal services such as education, health care, and real estate services. Also included are imputed bank service charges, import duties, and any statistical discrepancies noted by national compilers as well as discrepancies arising from rescaling. Data are in current local currency. Value added is the net output of a sector after adding up all outputs and subtracting intermediate inputs. It is calculated without making deductions for depreciation of fabricated assets or depletion and degradation of natural resources. The industrial origin of value added is determined by the International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC), revision 2.

Gross domestic savings are calculated as the difference between GDP and total consumption. Total consumption expenditures cover the consumption by households and the general government.

Gross national savings is equal to gross domestic savings plus net income and net current transfers from abroad.

Capacity to import equals the current price value of exports of goods and nonfactor services deflated by the import price index.

Terms of trade adjustment equals capacity to import less exports of goods and services in constant prices.

Gross domestic income is derived as the sum of GDP and the terms of trade adjustment.

Gross national income is derived as the sum of GNP and the terms of trade adjustment.

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Domestic Prices/Deflators

Overall (GDP) deflator is defined as the price index that measures the change in the price level of GDP relative to real output.

Consumer price index reflects the change in the cost to the average consumer of acquiring a fixed basket of goods and services. In general, a Laspeyres index formula is used.

Monetary Indicators

Money and quasi money comprise the sum of currency outside banks, demand deposits other than those of the central government, and the time, savings, and foreign currency deposits of resident sectors other than the central government. This definition is frequently called M2.

Net foreign assets are the sum of foreign assets held by monetary authorities and deposit money banks, less their foreign liabilities.

Net domestic credit is the sum of net credit to the nonfinancial public sector, credit to the private sector, and other accounts.

Claims on private sector include gross credit from the financial system to individuals, enterprises, nonfinancial public entities not included under net domestic credit, and financial institutions not included elsewhere.

Claims on government and other public entities usually comprise direct credit for specific purposes such as financing of the government budget deficit or loans to state enterprises, advances against future credit authorizations, and purchases of treasury bills and bonds. Public sector deposits with the banking system also include sinking funds for the service of debt and temporary deposits of government revenues.

Government Deficit or Surplus

Overall surplus/deficit is current and capital revenue and official grants received, less total expenditure and lending minus repayments.

Current revenue includes all revenue from taxes and nonrepayable receipts (other than grants) from the sale of land, intangible assets, government stocks or fixed capital assets, or from capital transfers from nongovernmental sources. It also includes inheritance taxes and nonrecurrent levies on capital.

Current expenditure includes requited payments other than for capital assets or for goods or services to be used in the production of capital assets, and unrequited payments for purposes other than permitting the recipients to acquire capital assets, compensating the recipients for damage or destruction of capital assets, or increasing the financial capital of the recipients.

Current budget balance is the excess of current revenue over current expenditure.

Financing refers to the means by which a government provides financial resources to cover a budget deficit or allocates financial resources arising from a budget surplus. It includes all government liabilities--other than those for currency issues or demand, time, or savings deposits with government--or claims on others held by government and changes in government holdings of cash and deposits. Government guarantees of debt are excluded. Financing from abroad refers to that obtained from nonresidents. Domestic financing refers to that obtained from residents.

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Foreign Trade

Value of exports shows the f.o.b. (free on board) value of goods provided to the rest of the world. They are classified using the Standard International Trade Classification (SITC), series M, no. 34, revision 2.

Value of imports shows the c.i.f. (cost, insurance, and freight) value of goods received from the rest of the world. Merchandise imports are classified using the Standard International Trade Classification (SITC), series M, no. 34, rev. 2.

Food comprises the commodities in SITC sections 0 (food and live animals), 1 (beverages and tobacco), and 4 (animal and vegetable oils and fats) and SITC division 22 (oil seeds, oil nuts, and oil kernels).

Agricultural raw materials comprise SITC section 2 (crude materials except fuels) excluding divisions 22, 27 (crude fertilizers and minerals excluding coal, petroleum, and precious stones), and 28 (metalliferous ores and scrap).

Fuels comprise SITC section 3 (mineral fuels).

Ores and metals comprise the commodities in SITC divisions 27, 28, and 68 (nonferrous metals).

Manufactures comprise the commodities in SITC sections 5 (chemicals), 6 (basic manufactures), 7 (machinery and transport equipment), and 8 (miscellaneous manufactured goods), excluding division 68.

Balance of Payments

Exports of goods, services and income is the sum of goods (merchandise) exports, exports of (nonfactor) services and factor receipts.

Imports of goods, services and income is the sum of goods (merchandise) imports, imports of (nonfactor) services and factor payments.

Goods, fob is a broader category which has replaced merchandise. The new category includes goods previously included in services: goods received or sent for processing and their subsequent export or import in the form of processed goods, repairs on goods, and goods procured in ports by carriers. Merchandise refers to all movable goods (including non-monetary gold) involved in a change of ownership from residents to nonresidents.

Services (previously nonfactor services) refer to economic output of intangible commodities that may be produced, transferred, and consumed at the same time. International transactions in services are defined by the IMF's Balance of Payments Manual (1993), but definitions may nevertheless vary among reporting economies.

Income refers to employee compensation paid to nonresident workers and investment income (receipts and payments on direct investment, portfolio investment, other investments, and receipts on reserve assets). Income derived from the use of intangible assets is excluded from income and recorded under business services.

Net current transfers are recorded in the balance of payments whenever an economy provides or receives goods, services, income, or financial items without a quid pro quo. All transfers not considered to be capital are current.

Workers' remittances are current transfers by migrants who are employed or intend to remain employed for more than a year in another economy in which they are considered residents. Some developing countries classify workers' remittances as a factor income receipt (and thus as a component of GNP). The World Bank adheres to international guidelines in defining GNP, and its classification of workers' remittances may therefore differ from national practices.

Current account balance is the sum of net trade (exports minus imports) in goods, services, and income plus net current transfers.

Net capital account includes government debt forgiveness, investment grants in cash or in kind by a government entity, and taxes on capital transfers. Also included are migrants' capital transfers and debt forgiveness and investment grants by nongovernmental entities.

Direct investment is net flows of investment to acquire a lasting management interest (10 percent or more of voting stock) in an enterprise operating in an economy other than that of the investor. It is the sum of equity capital, reinvestment of earnings, other long-term capital, and short-term capital as shown in the balance of payments.

Portfolio investment flows are net and include non-debt-creating portfolio equity flows (the sum of country funds, depositiry receipts, and direct purchases of shares by foreign investors). Liabilities constituting foreign authorities' reserves are excluded.

Other net investment reflects all other transactions with nonresidents in financial assets and liabilities except for exceptional financing, liabilities constituting foreign authorities' reserves, and reserve assets. Examples include short- and long-term loans, trade credits, and transactions in currency.

Net errors and omissions constitute a residual category needed to ensure that all debit and credit entries in the balance of payments statement sum to zero. In the International Financial Statistics presentation, this is equal to the difference between reserves and related items and the sum of the balances of the current, capital, and financial accounts.

Reserves and related items are the net change in a country's holdings of international reserves resulting from transactions on the current, capital, and financial accounts. These include changes in holdings of monetary gold, SDRs, foreign exchange assets, reserve position in the International Monetary Fund, and other claims on nonresidents that are available to the central authority. The measure is net of liabilities constituting foreign authorities' reserves, and counterpart items for valuation changes and exceptional financing items.

Gross international reserves comprise holdings of monetary gold, special drawing rights, the reserve position of members in the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and holdings of foreign exchange under the control of monetary authorities. The gold component of these reserves is valued at year-end (December 31) London prices.

For most countries, conversion factor is the official exchange rate as reported in the International Financial Statistics (line rf/wf -- period average), expressed in units of national currency per U.S. dollar. However, where the official exchange rate is judged to diverge by an exceptionally large margin from the rate effectively applied to domestic transactions of foreign exchange and internationally traded products, a Bank-staff estimated exchange rate is used.

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External Debt

Total external debt is the sum of public, publicly guaranteed, and private nonguaranteed long-term debt, use of IMF credit, and short-term debt.

Long-term debt is defined as debt that has an original or extended maturity of more than one year and that is owed to nonresidents and repayable in foreign currency, goods, or services. Long-term debt has three components: public debt, which is an external obligation of a public debtor, including the national government, a political subdivision (or an agency of either), and autonomous public bodies; publicly guaranteed debt, which is an external obligation of a private debtor that is guaranteed for repayment by a public entity; and private nonguaranteed debt, which is an external obligation of a private debtor that is not guaranteed for repayment by a public entity.

Use of IMF credit denotes repurchase obligations to the IMF for all uses of IMF resources (excluding those resulting from drawings on the reserve tranche). It is shown for the end of the year specified. It comprises purchases outstanding under the credit tranches, including enlarged access resources, and all special facilities (the buffer stock, compensatory financing, extended fund, and oil facilities), trust fund loans, and operations under the structural adjustment and enhanced structural adjustment facilities.

Short-term debt is defined as debt that has an original maturity of one year or less. Available data permit no distinction between public and private nonguaranteed short-term debt. Short-term debt includes the following: interest in arrears on long-term debt, which is interest payment due but not paid, on a cumulative basis; principal in arrears on long-term debt, which is principal repayment due but not paid, on a cumulative basis; and export credits, which includes official export credits, suppliers' credits, and bank credits officially guaranteed or insured by an export credit agency. Both long-term and short-term credits are included here.

Social Indicators

Urban population is the midyear population of areas defined as urban in each country as reported to the United Nations. It is measured here as the percentage of the total population.

Total fertility rate represents the number of children that would be born to a woman if she were to live to the end of her childbearing years and bear children in accordance with prevailing age-specific fertility rates.

Public expenditure on health consists of recurrent and capital spending from government (central and local) budgets, external borrowings and grants (including donations from international agencies and nongovernmental organizations), and social (or compulsory) health insurance funds.

Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were to stay the same throughout its life.

Infant mortality is the number of infants who die before reaching one year of age, per 1,000 live births in a given year.

Sanitation refers to the share of the population with at least adequate excreta disposal facilities that can effectively prevent human, animal, and insect contact with excreta. Suitable facilities range from simple but protected pit latrines to flush toilets with sewerage. To be effective, all facilities must be correctly constructed and properly maintained.

Public expenditure on education includes expenditures on public education plus subsidies to private education at the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels.

Adult female illiteracy is the proportion of female adults aged 15 and above who cannot, with understanding, read and write a short, simple statement on their everyday life.

Primary school enrollment ratio is the ratio of total enrollment, regardless of age, to the population of the age group that officially corresponds to the primary level of education. Estimates are based on UNESCO's classification of education levels. Primary, or first level, provides the basic elements of education at elementary or primary school.

Secondary school enrollment ratio is the ratio of total enrollment, regardless of age, to the population of the age group that officially corresponds to the secondary level of education. Estimates are based on UNESCO's classification of education levels. Secondary provides general or specialized instruction at middle, secondary, or high schools, teacher training schools, vocational or technical schools; this level of education is based on at least four years of instruction at the first level.

Labor force comprises people who meet the ILO definition of the economically active population: all people who supply labor for the production of goods and services during a specified period. It includes both the employed and unemployed. While national practices vary in the treatment of such groups as the armed forces and seasonal or part-time workers, in general the labor force includes the other unpaid caregivers and workers in the information sector.

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On external debt           On population projection                 On Social Indicators             On Economic timeseries                        On classification of economies