National Statistics Office (NSO) - Malta

Unit B1 - Structural Business Statistics

NSO

Lascaris - Valletta

VLT 2000

Malta

Structural business statistics (SBS) describes the structure, conduct and performance of economic activities, down to the most detailed activity level (several hundred economic sectors). SBS covers all activities of the business economy with the exception of agricultural activities, public administration and (largely) non-market services such as education and health. Main characteristics (variables) of the SBS data category:

• "Business demographic" variables (e.g. Number of active enterprises)

• "Output related" variables (e.g. Net turnover, Value added)

• "Input related" variables: labour input (e.g. Number of employees and self-employed persons, Hours worked by employees); goods and services input (e.g. Purchases of goods and services); capital input (e.g. Gross investments)

Business services statistics (BS) collection contains harmonised statistics on business services. From 2008 onwards BS become part of the regular mandatory annual data collection of SBS. The BS’s data requirement includes variable “Turnover” broken down by products and by type of residence of client. 

The annual regional statistics collection includes three characteristics due by NUTS-2 country region and detailed on NACE Rev 2division level (2-digits).

Statistical Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community (NACE):  NACE Rev.2 is used from 2008 onwards. Key data were double reported in NACE Rev.1.1 and NACE Rev.2 only for 2008. From 2002 to 2007 NACE Rev. 1.1 was used and until 2001 NACE Rev.1

The regional breakdown of the EU Member States is based on the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS). 

The product breakdown is based on the Classification of Products by Activity (CPA) as stated in the Regulation establishing CPA 2008 and its amending Commission Regulation (EU) No 1209/2014  (from reference year 2015 onwards).

Starting reference year 2021 onwards SBS cover the economic activities of market producers within the NACE Rev. 2 Sections B to N, P to R and Divisions S95 and S96.
Until 2007 the SBS coverage was limited to Sections C to K of NACE Rev.1.1 and from the reference year 2008 to 2020 data was available for Sections B to N and Division S95 of NACE Rev.2.
From 2013, as the first reference year, to 2020 information is published on NACE codes K6411, K6419 and K65 and its breakdown.

From 2008 reference year data collection BS covers NACE Rev 2 codes: J62, N78, J582, J631, M731, M691, M692, M702, M712, M732, M7111, and M7112.

SBS constitutes an important and integrated part of the new European Business Statistics Regulation N° 2152/2019

Data requirements, simplifications and technical definitions are definied in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1197

Enterprise Unit.

SBS cover selected market activities; more specifically NACE Rev. 2 Sections B to N, P to R, S95 and S96. The data includes branches of foreign enterprises but does not include overseas activities controlled by Maltese enterprises. Essentially, the SBS seeks to measure the domestic formal economy. The target population is selected from the Statistical Business Register maintained by the NSO. 

Starting from reference year 2021, the cut-off threshold of €7,000 in turnover, previously applied to the target population in past SBS datasets, was permanently eliminated.

SBS data covers active resident enterprises in Malta and Gozo. The data is segmented by region; however, at the NUTS2 level, the Maltese Islands are classified as one region, making the data at NUTS1 level and NUTS2 level equivalent.

2008 - 2021.

Not applicable.

• Number of enterprises and number of local units are expressed in units.

• Monetary data are expressed in millions of €.

• Employment variables are expressed in units.

• Per head values are expressed in thousands of € per head. 

Ratios are expressed in percentages.

An alignment with the calendar year is typically observed for data collection and reporting. However, when the financial statements of an Enterprise do not follow a December year-end, the reporting is adapted to correspond with the fiscal year as specified in the respective audited set of financial statements. This policy is established to ensure the integrity of data, reflecting the actual financial period and to avoid subjective calendar adjustments of the financial data.

Starting with reference year 2021 two new regulations currently form the legal basis of SBS:

• Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 repealing 10 legal acts in the field of business statistics (EBS Regulation), and
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1197 laying down technical specifications and arrangements (general implementing act) pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/2152

Year 1995 was the first year for the implementation of the Council Regulation No 58/97 (SBS Regulation).

The Council Regulation No 58/97 has been amended three times: by Council Regulation No 410/98, Commission Regulation No 1614/2002 and European Parliament and Council Regulation No 2056/2002. As a new amendment of the basic Regulation it was decided to recast the Regulation No 58/97 in order to obtain a new "clean" legal text.

In 2008 the European Parliament and Council adopted Regulation No 295/2008 and the provisions of this Regulation were applicable from the reference year 2008 to reference year 2020. Regulation No 295/2008 was amended by Commission Regulation (EU) No 446/2014.

Not applicable.

At National level:

The NSO requests information for the compilation of official statistics according to the articles of the MSA Act – Cap. 422 and the Data Protection Act – Cap. 586 of the Laws of Malta implementing the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR).

Article 40 of the MSA Act stipulates the restrictions on the use of information while Article 41 stipulates the prohibition of disclosure of information. Furthermore, Section IX of the Act (Offences and Penalties) lays down the measures to be taken in case of unlawful exercise of any officer of statistics regarding confidentiality of data.

Since its inception, the NSO has been committed to ensure the confidentiality of all collected data, using it solely for statistical purposes in accordance with established laws. The identity of data providers is protected, and any data that could lead to the identification of individuals or entities is not shared with third parties.

All NSO employees, upon joining, are made aware of confidentiality rules and requirements. As stipulated by the MSA Act, each staff member takes an oath of secrecy before starting their work.

The NSO has an internal policy concerning anonymisation and pseudo-anonymisation. This policy ensures that the data the office collects and shares is protected. It offers guidelines to NSO staff on applying appropriate data protection methods. This policy covers all data, irrespective of its format, managed by the NSO.

 At European level:

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.

Primary confidentiality is applied in two situations:

1. When there are fewer than three enterprises.
2. When data from one business unit can approximate a component of another unit within 10% accuracy (the p% rule).

Secondary confidentiality protects primary confidential data. Data flagged as primary confidential are suppressed to avoid revealing sensitive information. The NSO identifies this data using a method consistent with other statistical agencies.

Starting from reference year 2021, a new measure was introduced by the NSO to reduce confidentiality flags. Data from companies whose core metrics are in publicly available audited financial statements are deemed public and aren't flagged for confidentiality.

The NSO publishes and disseminates news releases at 1100 hrs as scheduled in the Advance Release Calendar. The calendar is published on the NSO website and includes a three-month advance notice (the current month and the forthcoming two months). This calendar is sometimes subject to changes.

Access to the release calendar is granted through the following link: https://nso.gov.mt/calendars/

An internal policy on dissemination is in place to govern the dissemination of official statistics in an impartial, independent and timely manner, making them available simultaneously to all users.

The NSO’s primary channel for the dissemination of official statistics is the NSO website. Tailored requests for statistical information may also be submitted through the NSO website.

Annual.

News releases directly following the SBS results can be found on NSO Malta | Structural Business Statistics - NSO Malta (gov.mt)

The results emanating from the SBS are used by other statistical domains and are reflected in other related news releases and publications.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

Not applicable.

The data is transmitted to Eurostat, either to be used in European aggregates or to be used for ad-hoc analyses and/or satellite accounts.

Work processes and procedures for the compilation of Structural Business Statistics are documented in a standardised reporting template and aligned to the GSBPM model. The model covers all phases of the statistical production process, from the initial stages of identifying what statistics are needed and the scope of the particular survey, to the final stages of dissemination and evaluation. The GSBPM report is only available internally and may be accessed by all NSO employees

The Recommendations Manual on SBS provided important guidelines on the implementation of EBS into reference year 2021. EC Regulations No. 250 and 251/2009 also provide a set of guidelines for compiling SBS data.

Dedicated SIMS reports are available to the public on the NSO’s metadata website including concepts related to metadata and quality.

For each reference year, in compliance with Eurostat's requirements, a quality report on SBS is generated and transmitted through the ESS Metadata Handler.

In addition to this, the Structural Business Statistics Unit annually archives detailed records of its processes and quality control procedures for internal reference.

In alignment with the ESS Code of Practice (ESS CoP) standards, the NSO established a comprehensive Internal Quality Management Framework (QMF). This framework is supported by a document detailing general quality guidelines that apply across all statistical domains. While ensuring methodological soundness remains a central focus of the QMF, the document also addresses various institutional aspects.

As part of the quality assurance procedure, the results of the SBS at macro level are compared with data from previous year. Any significant fluctuations in primary variables are closely examined, and the reasons for these variations are documented. When feasible, data are cross-verified with administrative sources to confirm their accuracy. The NSO consistently prioritises the accuracy of the data released to the public.

Every five to seven years, the NSO undergoes a Peer Review from Eurostat officials. This review gauges the NSO's alignment with the principles of the ESS CoP. These Peer Reviews are integral to the European Statistical System (ESS) strategy, enforcing adherence to the ESS CoP. Each National Statistical Institute (NSI) is prompted to complete a standard self-assessment questionnaire and this is followed by a visit of an expert team at the NSI, meeting its representatives and key stakeholders. The review culminates in a compliance report and highlights Improvement Actions, which the NSI is expected to act upon. The most recent Peer Review took place in 2022.

The quality management process starts with vetting the online submissions of the respondents. These are checked thoroughly to identify item non-response which is imputed from administrative sources, if available and also for other logical errors. The respondents may be contacted and queried about particular responses. After the data collection process, the data goes through a stringent quality framework in four different phases.

Phase 1 - A number of sector specific ratios (reflecting those applied at the Conval stage in the Input Hall) are applied on the micro data. Units that fall outside the acceptable thresholds need to be confirmed or updated as necessary.  Significant growths in the main variables when compared to the previous year are also scrutinised. New units that were not in the sample of the previous year and units which were in the sample of the previous year but not of the current are also examined.

Phase 2 - The main variables are checked against those computed from administrative data sources to check for any possible errors in the data collected for the individual units. The trade margins and mark ups of units in the wholesale and retail trade are checked against the average margins over a time-series from 2008 for their particular NACE category. Those which vary significantly from the average are checked and confirmed or updated as necessary. Units with high values of GVA/head and wage/head are investigated to ensure that the data at micro level is accurate.

Phase 3 -To ensure that the grossed up dataset is accurately representing the larger population, specifically units for which data was not collected, the implicit values for these units are identified using the methodology of the grossing up process. These implicit values are subsequently compared with values from administrative data sources. If significant discrepancies are detected between the two, the unit in question is subjected to imputation and is included as an observation unit but remains excluded from the sampling pool since such units are normally anomalies to the average performance of the respective stratum. In this manner, such additions would only represent themselves and would not influence the overarching patterns of the respective stratum.

Phase 4 - The GVA of industres at NACE Division level is compared to the values of the previous year and the main observations are documented. Reasons for growths or declines are established with special attention being given to main contributors to such events.

The main users of SBS data are considered to be Eurostat, the European Commission, researchers, students, international and local organisations focusing on SMEs and other Units within the NSO.

The last User Satisfaction Survey was held in 2014 with the aim to collect information about key users’ satisfaction with statistical output.

The NSO keeps record of the number of News Releases and publications disseminated on its website; the users to whom statistical products are provided; as well as the number of requests that are processed every year.

News Releases and tailor-made statistical outputs were assessed on account of their quality, timeliness, and on their ability to meet users’ needs.

All data requested in the SBS Regulation and which is relevant to Malta are regularly provided. The completeness assessment is rated in the EU-wide Quality Report produced by Eurostat.

Malta is usually exempted from sending variables that are less than the one percent of the European Community total and thus makes use of the 1% rule (exemption) and the CETO flag. Since it was the first year that the new NACEs were covered under the EBS regulation, the 1% rule exemption was not utilised. 

The main sources of error are assumed to be linked with the non-response rate, a controlled level of sampling error, and the respondents’ understanding of the questionnaire (non-sampling errors), with the biggest potential errors being non-sampling errors. 

To combat the sampling error, industries that contributed the most were amped up to lower the sampling error as much as possible. The final sampling error for the total economy stood at 4.4% on GVA, based on a 95% confidence interval.

The sources giving rise to non-sampling error include the following:

-        Data providers providing data for a reference year different than the one required;

-        Data not converted to Euro;

-        Improper record-keeping of important variables (such as hours worked);

-        Number of employees not provided as an average for the year; and

-        NACE misclassifications.

Imputations are carried out based on an administrative source and, in extreme cases, with data from previous years (for both unit and item non-response). In some cases, large enterprises are checked with financial statements when available or with an administrative source. Alternatively, if no information from administrative sources is available for item non-response in key variables, the sector and the size of the unit in question are considered, and an intelligent hot-deck imputation method is applied. For reference year 2021, imputations accounted for 13.2% of the total GVA.

The assessment on potential inaccurate reporting by respondents and/or businesses and wrong interpretation of financial statements cannot be accurately measured or estimated.

Preliminary SBS data, which is transmitted to Eurostat 10 months after the end of the reference period, is not published on the NSO (Malta) website. SBS data is transmitted to Eurostat at T+18 months and a summary of the full SBS results is published after the full transmission to Eurostat.

SBS 2021 was provided to Eurostat on 05/07/2023, 5 days after the stipulated deadline.  

The data is comparable across other EU countries due to common definitions and methodology of data.

The definitions and regulation align for years 2008-2020. Reference years from 2021 onwards are based on EBS, whereby a broader coverage of industries is covered as well as other methodological changes including the calculation of certain variables and the transmission methods. In addition to the EBS implementation, SBS data is now compiled on the basis of the Enterprise Statistical Unit. It also excludes units with a turnover below €10,000 from the sampling frame due to a pre-determined threshold.

In general, SBS data follows the same principles as Short-term business statistics, Statistical business registers, and National accounts. Differences in outputs can occur mainly due to diverging objectives, timeliness and range of possible inputs.

Computed fields were consistent across all years, but with the implementation of the EBS regulation, some changes in the computation of the variables created a break-in series in the comparability of these variables. Such an example is the computation of the value added.

SBS data seeks to be coherent with the Business Demography data also in fulfilment of the EBS regulation obligation. Internally, coherence is sought between SBS and National Accounts data.

For reference year 2021, around 8,000 enterprises made up the sample of SBS. Response was required from 5,767 enterprises as the rest were retrieved entirely from administrative sources. The SBS Unit constantly seeks ways to reduce administrative burden primarily by shortening the questionnaire for specific groups and replacing the answers of several questions using available administrative information. Self-employed business units whose data is available in administrative data sources, are required to fill in a shorter version of the questionnaire, which only expects the response for questions related to employment and investments. Additionally, companies are given the opportunity to upload a full set of financial statements and only fill in a limited number of questions. 

A group of around 300 companies were not contacted, since all their data could be taken from financial statements which are publicly available and other administrative data sources.

At the NSO, the revisions policy may be accessed from this link.

At the SBS Unit, the revision policy set for the SBS domain is set to revise all data one year after the target date. This review at T+30 (months) concept is a voluntary action programmed as a measure of quality for boosting the accuracy of SBS results to Eurostat and concurrently enhance the coherence between the National Accounts Statistics and the Structural Business Statistics.

SBS data is scheduled for review at T+30 months and transmitted to Eurostat. After such review exercise, data is considered final. 

SBS data is collected through a statistical survey, which is heavily supplemented and cross-checked with various administrative data sources and observations from other NSO departments. The Neyman Allocation is the chosen sampling strategy, which determines the required sampling counts for each stratum based on both the volume of units in the sampling frame and the efficiency variance observed in the preceding year's results. Strata are defined by employment size classes and NACE Divisions, though in certain instances, categorisation extends down to NACE Groups or Classes. The sampling frame, from which the sample is selected, and the target population are not identical. This is because they are extracted from the Statistical Business Register at different times and the sampling frame specifically excludes units with a turnover below €10,000 due to a predetermined threshold.

Annual data collection.

The SBS questionnaire is delivered to statistical units electronically. Initially, a letter is dispatched to the business address to confirm the email addresses. A few days later, unique links and passwords to access the e-questionnaire are sent via email. For those business units without internet access, a paper questionnaire is mailed. A .pdf version of this questionnaire is also available on the NSO website.

Non-respondents receive reminders through both emails and letters, followed by telephone calls for further follow-up. Data pertaining to credit institutions is sourced from the Central Bank of Malta and other administrative data sources to be compiled and transmitted by the NSO to Eurostat.

During the vetting phase, data is checked for obvious errors or item non-response and cross-referenced with financial statements. In addition, the information provided is analysed against data from previous years to identify any significant fluctuations. After the data is collected and vetted, it passes through a number of quality control checks to ensure that the data at micro level is within the set thresholds and that growth rates are confirmed. 

In case of non-response, administrative sources are used to replace the questionnaire information. When administrative data is unavailable, cold-deck imputations are primarily used, while also factoring-in the relevant stratum performance patterns from the current reference year. The grossing-up mechanism is deployed at stratum level. Stata are allocated based on the NACE Rev.2 framework (primarily at the two-digit level), and employment size categories. Incoming data is cross-referenced with Financial Statements (if accessible) and any available administrative sources. Any inquiries or discrepancies are addressed directly with respondents, typically via email or phone.

The NSO adjusts responses of hours worked that do not make reasonable sense and are above a certain threshold. Responses that are above 2,100 hours per full time equivalent employee would imply that the employees worked more than 40 hours during every week of  the year, without consuming any vacation leave or sick leave. In principle such responses may indicate that the respective businesses do not have an accurate measurement tool for actual hours worked. These responses are updated with more reasonable values that reflect the more likely actual hours spent at the place of work. Such adjustments are based on the results and indicators of the labour force survey (LFS) for the reference year, at NACE Section level.

No futher comments