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Culture statistics cover many aspects of economic and social life. According to the Europe 2020 strategy, the role of culture is crucial for achieving the goal of a "smart, sustainable and inclusive" growth. The international trade in cultural services is considered (alongside with the international trade in cultural goods) as one of the economic dimensions of culture. A specific set of statistics can be built based on Balance of Payments (BOP) data. The Balance of Payments (BoP) systematically summarizes all economic transactions between the residents and the non-residents of a country or of an economic area during a given period and provides harmonized information on international transactions which are part of the current account, the capital and the financial account.

Data on International Trade in Services (ITS), are an important component of the BoP current account, and are used, alongside with data on Foreign Direct Investment, to monitor the external commercial performance of different economies. ITS data are collected by national enterprise surveys, International Transaction System (ITRS) and administrative records.

 "Cultural services" refer to the particular set of services identified according to the Manual on Statistics of International Trade in Services 2010 (MSITS 2010); UNESCO-FCS Framework for cultural statistics (2009) and UNESCO-UIS The globalisation of cultural trade: a shift in consumption. International flows of cultural goods and services 2004-2013 (2016 edition). The ESSnet-Culture final report (2012) does not provide the reader with any section specifically dedicated to international trade in cultural services. The Eurostat WG 'Culture statistics' in its meeting in November 2016 agreed on the proposed selection of codes for cultural services.

Statistics on international trade in cultural services (as subset of BoP) provide the monetary value of such trade, with an analysis by the type of service and by partner country. These statistics are produced from the transactions recorded under a country’s balance of payments, which captures all transactions that take place between an economy’s residents and non-residents. Furthermore, international trade in cultural services statistics distinguishes between transactions between EU Member States (intra-EU transactions) and transactions with non-member countries (extra-EU transactions).

The international trade of cultural services covers the total value of credits (or exports), debits (or imports) and the net result or "balance" (credits minus debits) of the transactions with each partner.

The services categories are described in the Extended Balance of Payments Services Classification (EBOPS2010), which is consistent with the Balance of Payments Manual, 6th Edition (BPM6) but provides for more detailed breakdowns of the BPM6. Both EBOPS2010 and BPM6 give enhanced clarification for the measurement of international trade in services compared to previous versions of the standards for compilation of balance of payments. Alongside the main components, some complementary groupings of services are included in EBOPS 2010 classification.

Cultural categories can be seen as sub-items in items 8, 9, 10 and 11:

Item 8 Charges for the use of intellectual property n.i.e. (SH) – regarding licences:

            …

            8.4 Licences to reproduce and/or distribute audio-visual and related products (SH4)

                        8.4.1 Licences to reproduce and/or distribute audio-visual products (SH41)

                        8.4.2 Licences to reproduce and/or distribute other products (SH42)

Item 9 Telecommunications, computer and information services (SI) – regarding news agency and information services

            …

            9.3 Information services (SI3)

                        9.3.1 News agency services (SI31)

                        9.3.2 Other information services (SI32)

Item 10 Other business services (SJ) – regarding advertising and architectural services

            …

                        10.2.2 Advertising, market research and public opinion polling services (SJ22) (only advertising)

            …

                                    10.3.1.1 Architectural services (SJ311)

Item 11 Personal, cultural and recreational services (SK) – almost the whole item excluding health and education services

            11.1 Audio-visual and related services (SK1)

                        11.1.1 Audio-visual services (SK11)

                        11.1.2 Artistic related services (SK12)

            …

                        11.2.3 Heritage and recreational services (SK23)

Eurostat publishes data on international trade in the following cultural services:

• Licences to reproduce and/or distribute audio-visual and related products (SH4)
• Information services (SI3);
• Architectural services (SJ33);
• Audio-visual and related services (SK1);
• Heritage and recreational services (SK23).

These data have to be used taking into consideration:

-   insufficient availability of data for the item "Licenses to reproduce and/or distribute audio-visual and related products" (SH4) - the majority of countries do not provide these data because they are collected on voluntary basis;

-   difficulties in isolating 'Advertising services' from the category "Advertising, market research and public opinion polling services" (SJ22);

- no availability of the detailed breakdown on 'heritage services' in item SK23 "Heritage and recreational services",

For more details on classifications used in BoP statistics, please see metadata file international trade in services (BPM6) (bop_it6).

International trade in cultural services are the activities which involve the sale and delivery of an intangible cultural service between a producer and a consumer who are, in legal terms, based in different countries or economies.

In the EU, the external trade in services is monitored, reported and registered in accordance to EU regulations establishing the legal frames for these statistics. The conceptual frames are provided by respective methodological manuals: EBOPS 2010 and the BMP6. Services are compiled according to the EP and Council Regulation No 184/2005 as amended by Commission Regulation No 555/2012 as of 22 June 2012.

For more information about concepts and definitions used in statistics on balance of payments, please refer to metadata file international trade in services (BPM6) (bop_its6)

Any individual, corporation or other institution that provides information on the cultural transactions between the residents and non-residents of a country during a given period.

BoP statistical population includes all the economic transactions between residents and non-residents. The coverage of the statistical population assured by the reported transactions can be very different for different BoP items. Information on the transaction can be provided by individuals, corporations, or institutions.

The data generally cover the European Union, Euro area, EU Member States, the United Kingdom, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, Candidate Countries (Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey).

However, both quarterly and annual statistics under balance of payments has a specific geographical coverage. Details are summarised in the BoP Vademecum.

Data on international trade in cultural services cover the EU Member States, the United Kingdom, EFTA, Candidate Countries.

Annual international trade in cultural services data according to the BPM6 methodology are available from 2010 onwards: however the first reference year for the compilation of data according to this new methology was 2013 with backward calculations for years 2010-2012.

For years prior to 2010, data are available only according to the BPM5 methodology.

More details about revisions are available in the metadata file international trade in services (BPM6) (bop_its6)

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The trade value of cultural services is expressed in millions of Euro.

The international trade in cultural services present annual data.

International trade of services detailed annual data are available from 2010. Additional details are available in the metadata file international trade in services (BPM6) (bop_its6).

The Regulation n°184/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 January 2005 on Community statistics concerning balance of payments, international trade in services and foreign direct investment (OJ L35/23 of 8/02/2005), was applied as from reference year 2006 onwards. In addition, Commission Regulation (EC) No 601/2006, Commission Regulation (EC) No 602/2006, Commission Regulation (EC) No 707/2009 and Commission Regulation (EU) No 555/2012 have been published (OJ L106/7 and L106/10 of 18/04/2006), respectively implementing and amending Regulation (EC) No 184/2005.

For more details about the pool of texts regarding the EU legislation in the field of international trade in services statistics please consult the metadata file on international trade in services (BPM6) (bop_its6).

All legal texts of the EU are accessible on Eur-Lex.

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Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 on European statistics (recital 24 and Article 20(4)) of 11 March 2009 (OJ L 87, p. 164), stipulates the need to establish common principles and guidelines ensuring the confidentiality of data used for the production of European statistics and the access to those confidential data with due account for technical developments and the requirements of users in a democratic society.

Member States have the option to flag part of their data as confidential; this action represents the primary confidentiality. Eurostat performs then a secondary confidentiality treatment in order to avoid any (direct or indirect) recalculation of confidential cells. The outcome of the secondary confidentiality treatment is then submitted to the concerned country in order to give their agreement for the dissemination of the processed dataset.

For more information, please consult the metadata file international trade in services (BPM6) (bop_its6).

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Statistics on international trade in cultural services are not bound by a release calendar.

In line with the EU legal framework and the European Statistics Code of Practice Eurostat disseminates European statistics on Eurostat's website (see item 10 - 'Accessibility and clarity') respecting professional independence and in an objective, professional and transparent manner in which all users are treated equitably. The detailed arrangements are governed by the Eurostat protocol on impartial access to Eurostat data for users.

Annual data on international trade in cultural services are disseminated in December (regular annual publication of data on international trade in services).

News release online could be possible from time to time but there is not a fixed calendar for it.

No publication on this topic yet.

Please consult Eurostat reference database on-line.

International trade in cultural services data are available in Culture database.

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The methodological framework followed in the compilation of the Balance of Payments and International Trade in Services is that defined in the sixth edition of the International Monetary Fund Balance of Payments Manual (BPM6) and the Manual on Statistics of International Trade in Services (MSITS 2010).

Eurostat prepares annual quality reports for the BoP domain in accordance with Commission Regulation (EC) No 1227/2010 of 20 December 2010 implementing Regulation (EC) No 184/2005 (OJ No L 336/15). It contains information on relevance, accuracy, timeliness, punctuality, accessibility, clarity, comparability and coherence.

Quality is assured by the application of concepts according to the sixth edition of the IMF Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6) and thorough validation of the data delivered by countries.

Eurostat prepares annual quality reports for the BoP domain in accordance with Commission Regulation (EC) No 1227/2010 of 20 December 2010 implementing Regulation (EC) No 184/2005 (OJ No L 336/15).

The cultural sectors are a driver of economic growth and job creation. As a consequence, culture is becoming increasingly important at EU level. In accordance with article 167 of the Lisbon Treaty, the EU ‘shall contribute to the flowering of the cultures of the Member States, while respecting their national and regional diversity and at the same time bringing the common heritage to the fore’.

The EU supports these objectives through the Creative Europe programme, as well as a number of policy actions set out in the Work Plan for Culture (2015–2018) and Work Plan for Culture (2019–2022). The latest Work Plan adopted by EU Culture Ministers in November 2018, sets out the following main priorities for European cooperation in cultural policy-making: sustainability in cultural heritage, cohesion and well-being, ecosystem supporting artists, cultural and creative professionals and European content, gender equality and international cultural relations. The production of reliable, comparable and up-to-date cultural statistics, which are the basis of sound cultural policy-making, is a cross-sectorial priority of this Work Plan.

The production of reliable, comparable and up-to-date cultural statistics, which are the basis of sound cultural policy-making, is a cross-sectorial priority of this Work Plan.

Eurostat compiles culture statistics from several data collections conducted at EU level to provide policy-makers and other users with information on the main trends in employment, business, international trade in goods and services, participation and consumption patterns in the field of culture.

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Eurostat data on international trade in cultural services are based on the EU legislation on statistics on international trade in services, which is directly applicable in the Member States.

International Trade in Services data transmitted by the Member States are checked by Eurostat for their consistency and plausibility. If any problems (e.g. inconsistencies or omissions) are detected, Eurostat contacts the relevant Member State to check the figures and/or confirm correction/updates implemented by Eurostat.

While data on goods are generally based on Foreign Trade Statistics, data on services come from a variety of surveys where the data can be reported either by the banks or directly by the enterprises or the households. Data from national authorities are checked by Eurostat and the European Central Bank (ECB) as elaborated in Section 18.4 "Data Validation".

Asymmetries are another way of assessing the accuracy of statistics on flows, where, values of trade services reported by European countries are compared with that of their partners within the EU. The resulting differences are evaluated.

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Annual data on international trade in services are released around 11-12 months after the reference period. Preliminary data, with limited detail for partners and posts, are released 4 - 5 months after the reference period.

Data on international trade in cultural services as a component of statistics on international trade in services, are released alongside the main collection.

Punctuality of data on international trade in cultural services depends on primary data. Please consult the metadata file international trade in services (BPM6) (bop_its6)

The underlying methodological framework, which is defined in BPM6, ensures a high degree of comparability across countries. Regulation (EU) No. 555/2012 contains the questionnaires, and also all the details on the coding system, the format of the data and the deadlines for transmission. Each country compiles their ITS statistics using the data coming from a number of surveys and administrative sources.

The data are generally considered highly comparable over time. The methodology is revised according to the revisions of the sixth edition of IMF's Balance of Payments Manual (BPM6). In some countries, methodological breaks can affect time series (normally on a temporary basis). Backward calculations of time series are provided to ensure full time coherence in case of methodological changes.

BREXIT: New EU-27_2020 aggregate

Due to Brexit, a new aggregate, (EU-27_2020), has been calculated from February 2020 for the entire time series.

The ‘Statistics explained’ articles will be updated with the new EU-27_2020 aggregate progressively in 2020. 

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No data revisions are made at the secondary level (for cultural services) as they are made for primary data.

BoP data on international trade in services are revised with the updated information transmitted by the Member States, according to the timetable specified in the BoP Vademecum (Annex - Eurostat manuals and guidelines: BoP Vademecum (newest update) | Balance of Payments methodology). The new data received from a single country are loaded in Eurostat's database only when the dataset is updated for all the countries, according to the collection/table.

Every May preliminary (and not fully detailed) data for year T-1 are released together with revisions for year T-2. Every December data for year T-1 (with full detail by partner country) are published, together with revisions for years T-2 and T-3.

Statistics on international trade in cultural services are part of the Eurostat collection: Balance of payments - International transactions.

For more information, please consult the metadata file international trade in services (BPM6) (bop_its6).

For international trade in cultural services - annual.

For more information, please consult the metadata file international trade in services (BPM6) (bop_its6).

Detailed primary data are checked and validated to verify the plausibility of the data (e.g. the development of time series), their internal consistency (aggregates should match the sum of the sub-items), their correspondence with data already disseminated by the same country on its NSI web-page.

For more information, please consult international trade in services (BPM6) (bop_its6).

In the compilation of BoP, responsibility is shared between Eurostat and the ECB. A Memorandum of understanding (with a Bop Annex) has been signed between the two parties. Eurostat produces Euro area information only regarding the annual detail in trade in Services. All the other monthly and quarterly BoP data related to the Euro area available in Eurostat's database are produced by the ECB. However, within Services, data concerning the Euro area do not match up exactly with those released by the European Central Bank for the same period. The reason lies in a small methodological difference in the data transmitted to Eurostat and the ECB by one Member State. Eurostat is currently working to minimize these discrepancies in the very near future. See the Annex for more details on this issue.

In regard with the compilation of EU aggregates, Eurostat compiles the EU figures by consolidating the EU Member States' transactions vis-à-vis non-residents of the EU. The balance of payments of the EU institutions is added to the EU aggregate. Intra-EU transactions are not included in the calculation of the aggregate.

This methodology, which is used to compile the BoP aggregates for the EU-15, the EU-25 and the EU-27, has been agreed between Eurostat and ECB, which computes the euro area aggregate in a similar way. This methodology has the advantage of skipping the problem of the existing intra-EU asymmetries. More details on the issue of intra EU asymmetries are available in Eurostat Working Paper Asymmetries in the intra-EU balance of payments.

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