Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.
National Accounts Department / Short Term Statistics Unit
1.3. Contact name
Confidential because of GDPR
1.4. Contact person function
Confidential because of GDPR
1.5. Contact mail address
Mrs. Adelina Andrade. Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE)
Avenida António José de Almeida, 5. 1000-043 Lisboa, Portugal
1.6. Contact email address
Confidential because of GDPR
1.7. Contact phone number
Confidential because of GDPR
1.8. Contact fax number
Confidential because of GDPR
2.1. Metadata last certified
20 May 2026
2.2. Metadata last posted
20 May 2026
2.3. Metadata last update
20 May 2026
3.1. Data description
Services Production Indices
3.2. Classification system
NACE Rev. 2
3.3. Coverage - sector
Activity coverage:
Services: Sections H to N of NACE Rev.2 excluing Sections K
3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions
Production indices derive from turnover indices deflated with production prices indices (IPPS) at elementary level (3 digits of NACErev2) using Grass value added for aggregation.
3.5. Statistical unit
KAU (Kind-of-activity-unit).
3.6. Statistical population
Not applicable
3.7. Reference area
Portugal - All the economic territory is included
3.8. Coverage - Time
Production Services: Base 2021: starts at 012021.
3.9. Base period
Base year: 2021
Indices
Month
6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements
The survey is mandatory and fines up to EUR 50,000 be applied.
Planned changes in legal basis, obligation to respond and frame used
There are no planned changes
6.2. Institutional Mandate - data sharing
Data are transmitted to Eurostat only.
7.1. Confidentiality - policy
The National Statistical Law (”Lei 22/2008” from May 13th) establishes the main principles as well as the working methods and composition of the Statistical System.
7.2. Confidentiality - data treatment
NACE REV 2 with less than 4 units and below a response rate of 85% are considered confidential, except if all units gave their formal authorisation to release data.
8.1. Release calendar
An advance release calendar that provides notice one-quarter in advance of the precise release dates is disseminated on the Statistics Portugal Internet website. In addition, a two-month in advance release calendar is disseminated in Informação Estatística, (in Portuguese). Free copies can be ordered from the contact person shown on the dissemination formats page.
Production services indices are not published. Portugal publishes deflated turnover.
8.2. Release calendar access
An advanced Calendar is published with 2 month advance.
8.3. Release policy - user access
Data are not published.
Transmission to Eurostat and further use of the statistics
Data are transmitted to Eurostat by STADIUM using CSV files at the same time as data is released, or the day before under embargo.
Services: monthly, 42-45 days after the end of reference period
10.1. Dissemination format - News release
not applicable
10.2. Dissemination format - Publications
not applicable
10.3. Dissemination format - online database
not applicable
10.4. Dissemination format - microdata access
not applicable
10.5. Dissemination format - other
Data are sent to Eurostat to be used in European aggregates.
10.6. Documentation on methodology
Dissemination of documentation on methodology and sources used in preparing statistics
A detailed methodological note in Portuguese only for base year 2021 is available free.
10.7. Quality management - documentation
Not available.
11.1. Quality assurance
Monthly micro data are analyzed, checking the major changes on monthly and annual growth rates at enterprise level and also cross checking with other related variables of the unit’s answer. If necessary, units are contacted by telephone or email. Indices are analyzed to check the coherence of the results and, if necessary, the procedure is restarted.
All these procedures respect the quality policy defined in INE’s Code of Practice
All these procedures respect the quality policy defined statistics Portugal.
11.2. Quality management - assessment
Indices are based on reliable data; further methodological details and other information can be found in point 14; multiple plausibility checks with different sources are done.
12.1. Relevance - User Needs
Short-term statistics are used by different national (such as Central Bank, Ministry of Finance and researchers) and international institutions (Eurostat, OECD) and non-institutional users, according to the needs expressed in the Statistical Superior Council (SSC). The SSC is the body where the user’s needs are analyzed and the Statics Program defined. There are no user’s requests in addition to what is available.
12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction
Apart from occasional user surveys aimed at specific target groups, Statistics Portugal conducts 6 permanent user satisfaction surveys targeted at the users of 6 different SP services: the User Support Service (responding to information requests), SP Portal (website), SP Libraries, Study visits hosted by SP, Training sessions to basic and secondary school teachers aiming at improving statistical literacy and Training sessions in the context of Statistics Portugal Information Network in Higher Education Institutions Libraries.
User satisfaction measured in each of the permanent user satisfaction surveys is summarized into a user satisfaction index using the extreme balance responses (EBR). This approach values the extreme answers in detriment of the “central” valuations which tend to represent a less expressive dissatisfaction or satisfaction. The scale weights are as follows: EBR = F1 * (-1) + F2 * (-0,5) + F3 * (-0,25) + F4 * (0,25) + F5 * (0,5) + F6, where Fi means the relative frequency of observed values for each one of the categories i (i= 1,…,6). Data is referenced in a metric scale between -1 and +1, where values next to -1 mean full dissatisfaction and values near +1 mean full satisfaction.
Results have been already since 2014 and the user satisfaction index reached 0.61 EBR in 2023.
12.3. Completeness
The Services Production Indices are fully compliant regarding STS-Regulation.
13.1. Accuracy - overall
Period
Services
Jan-25
12,8
Feb-25
9,3
Mar-25
9,1
Apr-25
8,0
May-25
12,1
Jun-25
8,5
Jul-25
9,9
Aug-25
7,7
Sep-25
8,4
Oct-25
7,0
Nov-25
9,2
Dec-25
8,0
Average
9,2
13.2. Sampling error
It is not possible to indicate a classical sampling error.
13.3. Non-sampling error
Response Rate
Same as turnover in services.
A threshold of 85% is defined for dissemination. Nevertheless, usually data is published with a response rate of more than 90%.
Actions to speed up or increase the rate of response
A lot of checks are carried out at the micro and macro data level. For example the following processing errors may occur:
A) Treatment on micro-data-level
Human errors during the data editing process: these errors are often recognized with automated checks – online validation of chain and YOY rates of the unit;
Plausibility errors: a lot of checks are carried out automatically (but under possibility of human interaction): e.g. check of completeness/ sums/ horizontal logical dependences/ vertical relations/ average rates/ minimum/maximum values, etc..
etimation errors: the estiamted value is not within a plausible range of the per capita values by unit
The qualified checking of original respondent data, contacts to reporting units for corrections and the usage of sophisticated plausibility routines shall minimize the processing errors on micro-data-level.
B) Treatment on macro-data-level
Final checks with analyze-tables (aggregates / more complex relations). These tables include all variables of the STS-survey. The macro data tabled are verified by computer programs but also by the staff whether these macro-data as publication figures look plausible. The persons responsible for the index calculation have their own computer programs to test the index-plausibility of the different data at 3 and 2 digit level and for all aggregates. If inconsistencies are detected the data must be verified at micro-level again by using the raw data of the questionnaire.
Model effects, such as:
Imputation errors: the usage of previous period values tends to result in under or overestimating the real development (especially if big enterprises' values are missing). Therefore specific imputation methods for missing data are used to correct these errors.
Overcoverage / Undercoverage: Classification errors and Overcoverage are observed especially at the reference periods of January due to changes of the respondent units (i.e. deaths of enterprises, changes in enterprise structures, new classifications). Undercoverage: One of the reasons is the loss of responding units due to false classifications and the difficulty to find alternative enterprises during the reference year, yet it is not possible to quantify the under coverage rate.
Recommendations previewed in the Final Report of the Task Force Retail Trade Quality are applied to all indicators, mainly book 3.
The response rate is normally very high for the first release, nevertheless in case of non-response the largest units are contacted by telephone and units may also be contacted by fax. Ultimately a fine may be imposed.
14.1. Timeliness
Services: This indicator is sent to Eurostat 40 to 42 days after the end of the reference period.
For all indices, the monthly data is considered to be definitive one year after the end of the calendar year in which the reference month falls. Revisions are made to the two previous periods.
Timetable of data collection:
For Turnover Questionnaires are sent around the 25th of the reference month. The enterprises are requested to answer within 10 days (calendar days) of the end of the reference month.
14.2. Punctuality
STS deadlines have been respected.
15.1. Comparability - geographical
Due to harmonized STS indices in the European Union, it is possible to compare Portuguese aggregates with those of other European countries. There is no regional desegregation, but all national territory is covered, including the AR’s (Azores and Madeira).
15.2. Comparability - over time
Production in Services starts t in 012021.
15.3. Coherence - cross domain
Cross-checks with absolute STS-values (previous month and year). At the first release moment no other data is available for comparisons. At the end of each year an annual trend is compared with the trend of the administrative source IES/SBS.
15.4. Coherence - internal
Aggregate levels derive from weighting 3 digit level indices (not published).
according to a questionnaire send to all companiesin the sample in 2025:
Services: cost burden can only be measured for the whole variables 120 and 230. burden 14723 hours. Response rate 49,3%
17.1. Data revision - policy
The document “Politica de Revisões” (revision policy) contains the guidelines to follow. This document can be found following the link: Revisions policy
In the particular case all STS indicators in every reference period m, m-1 and m-2 are revised and the revisons are published at the same time as the press release (notes). in m+15 (in the press release of March of the following year) all year is revised and closed. Only in case of 'extraordinary revision' data will be reopened.
the same revision is applied both to data released nationally and to data transmitted to Eurostat
17.2. Data revision - practice
When the data of a new period is disseminated, data from the two previous periods are revised. In March of each year all periods of the previous year are revised. An explanatory note in Destaque - Informação à Comunicação Social - refers each month precisely to the revisions.
QPI for production are not possible to estimate due to the short lengh of the series.
18.1. Source data
Type of source: indirect - indices of turnover and production prices indices
Type of index:All indices are expressed in a Laspeyres index type and refer to a rate of change in the latest period compared to the previous period.
Estimates for grossing-up to population levels:
not applicable
Method of weighting and chaining:
Services Production: the weighting factor is the Gross Value Added r for the 3-digit level of NACE Rev.2 obtained from the administrative data IES (informação empresarial simplificada) and IRS (income tax) confronted with national accounts values.
Planned changes in production methods: Chaining indices with moving weights.
Production indices derive from turnover indices deflated with production prices indices (IPPS) at elementary level (3 digits of NACErev2) using Grass value added for aggregation.
KAU (Kind-of-activity-unit).
Not applicable
Portugal - All the economic territory is included
Month
Period
Services
Jan-25
12,8
Feb-25
9,3
Mar-25
9,1
Apr-25
8,0
May-25
12,1
Jun-25
8,5
Jul-25
9,9
Aug-25
7,7
Sep-25
8,4
Oct-25
7,0
Nov-25
9,2
Dec-25
8,0
Average
9,2
Indices
Estimates for non-response:
not applicable
Estimates for grossing-up to population levels:
not applicable
Type of index:All indices are expressed in a Laspeyres index type and refer to a rate of change in the latest period compared to the previous period.
Estimates for grossing-up to population levels:
not applicable
Method of weighting and chaining:
Services Production: the weighting factor is the Gross Value Added r for the 3-digit level of NACE Rev.2 obtained from the administrative data IES (informação empresarial simplificada) and IRS (income tax) confronted with national accounts values.
Planned changes in production methods: Chaining indices with moving weights.
Type of source: indirect - indices of turnover and production prices indices
Services: monthly, 42-45 days after the end of reference period
Services: This indicator is sent to Eurostat 40 to 42 days after the end of the reference period.
For all indices, the monthly data is considered to be definitive one year after the end of the calendar year in which the reference month falls. Revisions are made to the two previous periods.
Timetable of data collection:
For Turnover Questionnaires are sent around the 25th of the reference month. The enterprises are requested to answer within 10 days (calendar days) of the end of the reference month.
Due to harmonized STS indices in the European Union, it is possible to compare Portuguese aggregates with those of other European countries. There is no regional desegregation, but all national territory is covered, including the AR’s (Azores and Madeira).
