Relevance
The producer price indices
provide information about developments in the prices of fruit, vegetables,
animals, and animal products over a particular period, whereas input price
indices monitor changes in the purchase prices of raw and auxiliary materials
and services from other industries. Output
price indices are calculated using 'producer prices', which are prices obtained
by farmers, excluding subsidies. Input
price indices are calculated using purchase prices of raw and auxiliary
materials and services. Both the output
and input prices used in the calculation of output and input indices are
calculated net of VAT.
There is no official regulation with Eurostat but
data related to producer/input price indices is collected and transmitted to
Eurostat according to a gentleman's agreement with the Member States.
Methodological
description
Administrative sources are mainly used in the
compilation of the producer price index.
These administrative sources include the Pitkali Markets, the Farmer
Central Co-operative Society (FCCS), and Gozitano; the Civil abattoir; private
poultry slaughter houses; the Department of Agriculture, and the Malta Dairy
Products Ltd. The retail price of
slaughtered rabbits is obtained from the Price Statistics Unit within the NSO.
Major retail outlets specialising in the
provision of agricultural products used for intermediate consumption, provide
quarterly data on input prices. In
addition, these are compiled on the basis of data provided from the Price
Statistics, Short-term Statistics, and International Trade Statistics Units
within the NSO.
Accuracy and
reliability of data
Producer/input agriculture price data is checked for consistency and
compared with data from the previous period. In case discrepancies in the prices used for
the compilation of the indices emerge, data is checked in detail and where necessary
the respective administrative source is re-contacted.
Timeliness and
punctuality of data
A quarterly news release related to
producer/input agricultural price indices was published on the NSO’s
website as scheduled in the Advance Release Calendar up to reference
quarter Q4 of 2015. Data for a
particular quarter under review was published in the following quarter.
Data is
always collected and sent to Eurostat within the timeframes stipulated. Quarterly price indices are transmitted not
later than 45 days after the end of the reference quarter; annual price indices
are transmitted not later than 60 days after the end of the reference year; and
annual estimates of price indices are transmitted not later than 45 days before
the end of the reference year.
Accessibility and
clarity of data
Tables on producer/input
agriculture price indices are also included in an annual publication
‘Agriculture and Fisheries’ which is available on the NSO’s website up to
reference year 2014.
A metadata report is produced at a national level and is
available on the NSO’s metadata website.
Coherence and
comparability / consistency of data
The Agricultural Price Indices refer to Malta at a
national level. No indices are produced
at a regional level. Annual and
quarterly data is available from year 2000 onwards.
The data is comparable to data of other European Union
member states since all countries follow the established methodological
guidelines in compiling the price indices.
While
annual indices are comparable, the comparison between quarterly price indices
can only be made between the corresponding quarters of different years. This is due to variation among weights from
quarter to quarter for the output products.
Metadata