Terms used in official statistics

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Production indices in physical terms


Definition:

Indices of industrial production dynamics calculated based on data expressed in physical units of measure such as pieces, tons, square metres (i.e. data about manufactured or sold production) which is indicative on the production level change in the given period compared to the level in the period considered to be basic.



Production indices in physical terms, as opposed to the indices calculated based on the value data, are not distorted by price changes and production structure changes in enterprises. The basis for calculation of these indices is production data about representative products, chosen purposely and characteristic for the given economic activity (branch, manufacturing sector). The term "representative products" can refer both to concrete industrial products and to relatively homogenous assortment groups which include products similar in use and technical design. To acquire aggregate indices which are indicative of production dynamics of an enterprise, of the industry in total or of chosen lower level groupings, for example product branches in SWW or groups and classes of products in PKWiU, it is necessary to weight individual indices of representative products. i.e. to calculate the weighted average of individual indices. The weights reflect the influence of singular representative products on the total index. Most commonly, such measures as sold production and value added are used as weights. In statistics, generally two kinds of production indices in physical terms are calculated: Paasche index, where values from the current period are assumed as weights (i.e. the production structure and price structure in the current period are used) and Laspeyres index, where values from the reference period are assumed (i.e. the production structure and price structure in the reference period are used). Moreover, sometimes a so-called Fisher index is used to formulate generalised conclusions about quantity dynamics. The Fisher index is a geometric mean of Paasche index and Laspeyres index.


High-level terms

Contact person on methodology:
GUS – Departament Przedsiębiorstw
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