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For any question on data and metadata, please contact: Eurostat user support |
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1.1. Contact organisation | National Institute of Statistics ( Istat) |
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1.2. Contact organisation unit | Directorate for Business Statistics (DCSE) Division for short-term business statistics (SED) |
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1.5. Contact mail address | Via Tuscolana, 1788 00173 Rome Italy |
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2.1. Metadata last certified | 15/06/2023 | ||
2.2. Metadata last posted | 15/06/2023 | ||
2.3. Metadata last update | 15/06/2023 |
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3.1. Data description | |||
Retail trade Index (Indice del commercio al dettaglio) Data on monthly retail trade value, with reference to the main retail trade activities as in NACE Rev.2. |
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3.2. Classification system | |||
NACE Rev. 2. |
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3.3. Coverage - sector | |||
Activities covered: all Groups of Division 47 of NACE Rev. 2 except enterprises having the sale of car and fuel as main economic activity.
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3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions | |||
List and definition of variables: Turnover and volume of sales. Turnover includes VAT. |
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3.5. Statistical unit | |||
Reporting unit: Enterprise Observation unit(s): Enterprise |
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3.6. Statistical population | |||
Retail trade enterprises classified in Division 47 of NACE Rev.2. The total number of enterprises are about 8000. |
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3.7. Reference area | |||
Whole national territory |
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3.8. Coverage - Time | |||
Series of index with base 2015=100 start from January 2000. |
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3.9. Base period | |||
Starting from January 2018 indices are in base 2015=100 |
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Indices, percentage changes (%). |
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Calendar month. |
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6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements | |||
Legal basis National level: This is one of the mandatory surveys fixed every year by a Decree of the President of the Republic (D.P.R.). European level: |
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6.2. Institutional Mandate - data sharing | |||
Not available. |
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7.1. Confidentiality - policy | |||
Several national legal acts guarantee the confidentiality of data requested for statistical purposes. According to art. 9, paragraph 1 of the Legislative Decree n. 322 of 1989, personal data can only be disseminated in aggregate form, in order to make it impossible to identify individuals. The Personal Data Protection Code - introduced by the Legislative Decree no. 196 of 30 June 2003 - provides special rules concerning the processing of personal data for statistical purposes within the National Statistical System (Sistan). Further, in order to make statistical secrecy and protection of personal data effective, Istat is currently taking appropriate organisational, logistical, methodological and statistical measures in accordance with internationally established standards.
Links to relevant legal acts on statistics are also listed on the website of Sistan (http://www.sistan.it).
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7.2. Confidentiality - data treatment | |||
Survey elementary data are treated as confidential. Aggregated data are disseminated in I.stat. Some variables can be transmitted to Eurostat as confidential when they are not disseminated in Italy. |
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8.1. Release calendar | |||
Every year, in December ISTAT publishes a release calendar providing the monthly release dates for the coming year. The calendar is distributed to the press and is available free of charge to interested parties. |
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8.2. Release calendar access | |||
The release calendar is disseminated on ISTAT's website https://www.istat.it/en/information-and-services/journalists/press-releases-/press-calendar |
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8.3. Release policy - user access | |||
Every month, data are transmitted to Eurostat as confidential, via Edamis (file extension '.xml'), with a delay of 30 days from the reference period. With the national press release, after few days, data become public. Time series are available on I.Stat database and, through thematic information systems, users can choose information according to their needs, building customised tables or downloading prepackaged datasets. Data are always accompanied by meta- information, methodologies, classifications, definitions. Microdata files are released free of charge and in compliance with the principle of statistical secrecy confidentiality and protection of personal data. |
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Monthly. |
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10.1. Dissemination format - News release | |||
Data releases "Statistiche flash - commercio al dettaglio" are posted on Istat website according to a prefixed annual release calendar, published by the previous December. |
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10.2. Dissemination format - Publications | |||
Data are made available also through a statistical yearbook: "Annuario Statistico Italiano" (ASI) - Italian Statistical Yearbook |
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10.3. Dissemination format - online database | |||
Monthly data are also available in the I.stat database (I.Stat) theme "Services", data set "Index of retail trade sales". The on-line database I.Stat is open and free, statistics are organised by theme in a two-level hierarchical tree. Data are presented in aggregate form in multidimensional tables; acting on variables and reference periods, users can create custom tables and graphs. The system can be searched by keyword, theme and region. A wide range of standard metadata facilitates the retrieval and understanding of statistics by users. More information available in the User Guide |
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10.4. Dissemination format - microdata access | |||
Validated microdata are stored in the repository of the Institute, ARMIDA. Microdata are released for research purposes in compliance with the principle of statistical secrecy and protection of personal data. |
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10.5. Dissemination format - other | |||
Not available |
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10.6. Documentation on methodology | |||
A short description of the methodology and characteristics of the survey is included in the technical explanatory note, attached to the monthly press release. Concerning indexes with base 2015, further details can be found in: ISTAT, "Gli indici del valore delle vendite del commercio al dettaglio. La nuova base 2015", released on 14 March 2018.
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10.7. Quality management - documentation | |||
The Istat Information system on quality of statistical production processes SIQual contains information on the execution on Istat statistical production processes and on activities developed to guarantee quality of the produced statistical information. For Details: http://siqual.istat.it/SIQual/visualizza.do?id=0109600 |
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11.1. Quality assurance | |||
Istat quality policy is coherent with the European framework developed by Eurostat, taking up its main principles and definitions Further details are available on: https://www.istat.it/en/methods-and-tools/tools-for-data-quality |
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11.2. Quality management - assessment | |||
The trade-off between timeliness (fundamental for STS data) and accuracy must be considered. Any initiative in favor of the overall quality of the survey process and data produced is considered and, if possible, carried out. |
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12.1. Relevance - User Needs | |||
Main users of Retail trade index are: - Institutions: government departments, ECB, national central bank, international organisations, etc. |
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12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction | |||
User satisfaction can be evaluated on the basis of communications (formal or informal) and exchanges of information. The overall satisfaction is good. |
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12.3. Completeness | |||
European requirements are fulfilled. |
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13.1. Accuracy - overall | |||
Data are collected by a sample of retail trade enterprises, stratified according to the main economic activity (NACE classes and fifth digit for the Italian version of the classification), and size.
The accuracy overall is an important goal, that is pursued also by reducing as much as possible non-sampling errors and analysing revisions. Extended follow up actions are made in order to reduce non-responses.
The sources used to produce monthly indicators are the business register and the survey data. Monthly data are collected by electronic questionnaire, available in a web portal used by our NSI to gather all survey data form enterprises.
Once a year part of the sample is refreshed, in order to reduce burden on respondents, to guarantee a good level for coverage and to take into account of the business demography.
Nonresponse is handled by imputation methods, which take into consideration both longitudinal and cross-sectional data.
The volume indices are obtained by a deflator of sales, calculated with suitable price indices. The revision of the volume of sales is mainly caused by the revision of the turnover indices.
Some analyses are being carried out to experiment the use of administrative sources. For retail trade the use of tax authority information to further improve turnover estimates is still at an experimental stage.
The weighted response rate for 2022 is 85.7%. |
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13.2. Sampling error | |||
The sample consists of two parts: census for enterprises with more than 49 persons employed, sample for enterprises with 1-49 persons employed.
A measure for the sampling error cannot be calculated as data are not collected by a probability sample.
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13.3. Non-sampling error | |||
Non sampling error is controlled through specific procedures: constant follow up actions, support to help units with the questionnaire compilation, use of automatic tools (i.e. applications) developed to check data. Particular attention is addressed to larger units. Anyway, taking into consideration the huge amount of small retail trade enterprises in Italy, units with a small number of persons employed are also monitored and supported for the correct data transmission.
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14.1. Timeliness | |||
All the deadlines stated in the EBS Regulation are met.
Indexes for all the aggregates, listed in the EBS Regulation, are transmitted to Eurostat within 30 days. At a national level, monthly indexes are released on average within 38 days after the end of the reference month.
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14.2. Punctuality | |||
All the scheduled releases are delivered on time. |
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15.1. Comparability - geographical | |||
Not applicable, only national level. |
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15.2. Comparability - over time | |||
Data on main aggregates are comparable since 1995. When changes in source data, methodology, and statistical techniques are introduced, time series are back-casted as far back as reasonably possible. |
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15.3. Coherence - cross domain | |||
Comparisons with structural business statistics data and estimates from non official sources are made. |
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15.4. Coherence - internal | |||
Internal coherence between aggregates is verified. |
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The cost estimate is compiled in terms of total number of hours worked (THW). It is equal to the product of three terms: (total) Annual Working Days (AWD), (total) Hours Worked per Day (HWD), Number of Persons involved in the Survey (NPS).
The burden estimate is compiled in terms of total number of minutes (TNM) taken to fill in the (web) questionnaire. The burden is applied to respondent, i.e. the person who fills in the questionnaire on behalf of the enterprise. To estimate it, two elements have been taken into account. The former distinguishes between beginner and expert respondent, to point out respectively the person who fills in the web questionnaire for the first time and the one who is familiar with filling in the form. The latter, closely concerns the information that have to be monthly provided. On average, by combining these two elements, the time spent to fill in the questionnaire (just the burden) is estimated in terms of total number of minutes between a minimum and a maximum threshold.
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17.1. Data revision - policy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Revisions are mainly due to new information (late respondents), and to changes in data of single enterprises and change of base year. In case of exceptional revisions due to error correction a prompt communication is given both to Eurostat and on the Istat website. |
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17.2. Data revision - practice | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Major changes in methodology, sources and statistical techniques are announced in ad hoc publications.
Advance notification of methodological changes is also provided through seminars and papers disseminated throughout the scientific community.
Monthly revisions (routine revisions) are also scheduled and concern both indexes transmitted to Eurostat and indexes nationally released.
The revision is made in order to take into account the additional information from the respondents.
Details on revision policy are also available at the web page https://www.istat.it/en/economic-trends/revisions |
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18.1. Source data | |||
Type of source: Sample survey.
Sample or census: Sample survey for enterprises with less than 50 persons employed. Census for enterprises with more than 49 persons employed.
Criteria for stratification: Stratification is based on:
Threshold values and percentages: A threshold is represented by 50 persons employed.
Frequency of updating the sample: The sample is updated every year, in order to take into account changes occurred in the population of interest concerning both number of units per strata and single enterprises.
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18.2. Frequency of data collection | |||
Data are collected monthly. |
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18.3. Data collection | |||
Questionnaires used in the survey: An electronic questionnaire is available for the collection of monthly data. |
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18.4. Data validation | |||
Data collected are recorded in a database and, before being validated, are checked using several tools available in the survey information system. Checks are made considering the coherence of data with respect to the whole dataset. Checks using historical data are also carried out. Before data transmission to Eurostat file format, code lists and consistency are checked by automatic procedures. |
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18.5. Data compilation | |||
Estimates for non-response:
Non responses are imputed each month. Different methods are used depending on the availability of data at the level of single enterprise. Generally speaking methods are based on light modifications of the methods proposed by Hidiroglou and Berthelot for the short-term surveys of Statistics Canada. The general idea is to exploit as much as possible all available data at the enterprise level. If an estimation is needed for a certain enterprise not responding in the month t, two main rules hold:
Estimates for grossing-up to population levels:
Not relevant for our retail trade statistics compilation, as no grossing-up is applied in the indexes calculation.
Method of weighting and chaining:
Weights are elaborated using structural business statistics, data from the survey itself and external sources or estimates. Weights are given by an estimate of total turnover of each stratum referred to the universe of enterprises in the base year.
Planned changes in production methods: |
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18.6. Adjustment | |||
WDA, SA and other calculations: Starting from the reference month August 2001 seasonal adjustment is performed for the following series: total retail trade turnover, retail trade turnover of food products, retail trade turnover of non-food products. Working day adjustment is carried out for all the series transmitted to Eurostat: Deflators are estimated according to the aggregation level indicated in EU Regulation, on the basis of monthly indices of consumer prices HICP. For what concerns national dissemination, seasonal adjusted data are produced for Food, Non-food and Total series. With reference to the seasonally adjustment procedure used to treat the indicators disseminated, the seasonal adjustment models were reviewed to manage the exceptional decreases caused by the COVID-19 pandemic emergency taking into consideration the Eurostat guidelines. Annexes: Template_BCS_TOTES_VAL Template_BCS_TOTES_VOL |
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None. |
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