 | | Chain Fisher Volume Index |
Glossary
Accrued net income of farm operators from farm production
Net income received by farm operators from farm production plus the
undistributed portion of earnings arising out of the operations of the
Canadian Wheat Board and the adjustment made to shift agricultural subsidies
from a cash to an accrual basis.
Association of individuals
Non-profit institutions serving households, such as churches, labour
unions and charitable organizations, plus credit unions, trusteed pension
plans, life insurance companies, fraternal societies and mutual non-life
insurance companies. They are treated as businesses with respect to
their capital outlays and their intermediation activities, but as persons
with respect to their current expenses.
Bonds
Marketable and non-marketable securities issued in Canadian or foreign
currency with an original term to maturity in excess of one year. Includes:
Canada bonds
Direct bonds of the federal government (of which, Canada Savings Bonds)
and guaranteed federal enterprise bonds.
Provincial bonds
Direct bonds of provincial governments (of which, provincial savings
bonds) and guaranteed provincial enterprise bonds.
Municipal bonds
Direct bonds of municipalities and guaranteed municipal enterprise bonds.
Other bonds
Bonds issued by Canadian corporations, hospitals and non-profit institutions,
as well as non-guaranteed bonds of government business enterprises.
Also included are asset-backed securities.
Business sector
All transactors producing goods and services for sale at a price intended
to cover costs of production, namely corporations, government business
enterprises, unincorporated businesses and independent professional
practitioners. Also includes owners occupying their own dwelling, treated
as businesses renting to themselves, and associations of individuals,
treated as businesses with respect to their capital outlays and their
intermediation activities.
 Canada and Quebec Pension
Plans
The part of the government sector which consists of the operations of
the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans, established in 1966.
Canadian residents
Institutional units, such as persons, corporations and non-profit institutions,
which have a centre of economic interest (a dwelling, a business location)
in the economic territory of Canada.
Capital and financial account
This account shows, for each major sector,
a) the saving and acquisition of non- financial capital and the difference
between them, called net lending; and
b) transactions in financial assets, transactions in liabilities and
the difference between them, called net financial investment. In theory,
the two balancing items, net lending and net financial investment, are
equal; in practice, imperfections in the statistics lead to a difference
between the two, shown as a statistical discrepancy.
Capital consumption allowances
Allowances for the using up of capital in the productive process. They
are calculated for business and government fixed assets as well as housing.
They also include miscellaneous valuation adjustments bringing business
accounting records into conformity with national accounts definitions,
such as the addition of claims paid by insurance companies to compensate
for fire and other losses.
Capital transfers
Transfers in cash or in kind, out of the wealth of the donor (inheritances
and migrants’ funds, transfer of ownership of an asset or cancellation
of a liability), or transfers which the recipient is expected to use
towards the acquisition of an asset. Capital transfers have no effect
on the saving of the donor or recipient.
Chain price indexes
Price indexes where the values of the aggregate index for two adjacent
periods, calculated from the detailed price indexes, are based on the
expenditure pattern from the first of the two periods, and where these
index values are linked together in a chain to form the index.
Chain Fisher volume index
A measure of change in volume from period to period. It is calculated
as the geometric mean of a chain Paasche volume index and a chain Laspeyres
volume index. In other words, it is an average of two distinct measures
of change in volume: one calculated as if prices were constant in the
first of two adjacent periods (Laspeyres volume) and the other calculated
as if prices were constant in the second of the two adjacent periods
(Paasche volume).
Claims
Financial instrument comprising:
Corporate claims
Loans, advances and issues of debt between associated corporations;
on the asset side, also includes investment in shares between associated
corporations.
Government claims
Claims between governments, between related government business enterprises
or between a parent government and its enterprises, in the form of shares,
debt securities, loans and advances.
Constant prices
A valuation expressed at the prices prevailing during a fixed reference
or base period. At present, the base period for national accounts estimates
in constant prices is 1992, which means that they have been restated
in 1992 prices. See current prices.
Consumer credit
Credit extended to persons for purchasing consumer goods and services.
Consumer goods
New goods acquired by households for their own consumption. Comprise
three categories:
a) Durable goods, which can be used repeatedly or continuously
for more than one year, such as motor vehicles and major appliances;
b) Semi-durable goods, which can be used on multiple occasions
and have an expected lifetime of one year or somewhat more, such as
clothing, footwear and linens;
c) Non-durable goods, which can be used only once, such as food,
gasoline, alcoholic beverages and tobacco; in practice, the latter also
include a few goods of little value used more than once, such as household
supplies.
Consumer services
Services consumed by households, such as rent (including the rent imputed
on owner-occupied housing), transportation, education, medical care,
child care, food and accommodation services as well as travel expenditures
of Canadians abroad, less travel expenditures of foreigners in Canada.
Also includes the current (operating) expenses of associations of individuals.
Contributions to social insurance plans
Employer and employee contributions to employment insurance, government
pension funds, the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans and workers’
compensation.
Corporate and government business enterprise sector
All business transactors whose legal form of organization is the corporation,
plus government business enterprises. This sector is divided into non-financial
and financial enterprises. The latter are comprised of several sub-sectors
(Bank of Canada, chartered banks, credit unions, life insurance companies,
trusteed pension funds, mutual funds, etc.). The intermediation activities
of credit unions, life insurance companies and trusteed pension funds
shown as assets of these sub-sectors are balanced by claim liabilities
which, in turn, are assets of the persons and unincorporated business
sector.
Corporation profits before taxes
The net earnings from economic activity of privately-held corporations,
measured after deduction of capital consumption allowances.
Currency and deposits
Financial instruments comprising:
Currency and bank deposits
Deposits denominated in Canadian dollars at chartered banks in Canada
and at the Bank of Canada, plus Canadian currency and coin in circulation.
Other deposits
All deposits at other Canadian deposit-taking institutions, including
shares in credit unions.
Foreign currency and deposits
Holdings of foreign currency and foreign currency denominated deposits
at chartered banks in Canada, foreign branches and subsidiaries of Canadian
chartered banks, foreign banks and other foreign deposit-taking institutions.
Current prices
A valuation at current prices is expressed at the prices prevailing
during the period being referred to. See constant prices.
Current transfers
Transfers out of the income of the donor, reducing his saving and adding
to that of the recipient.
Current transfers from corporations to persons
Charitable donations and other contributions.
Current transfers from government to business
Subsidies to the business sector.
Current transfers from government to non-residents
Pensions paid to non-residents, contributions to international organizations
and economic and technical assistance as well as food aid provided by
the Canadian International Development Assistance Agency and other governmental
agencies.
Current transfers from government to persons
Payments such as the Child Tax Benefit/Credit, Employment Insurance
benefits, old age security benefits, welfare payments, scholarships
and research grants, workers’ compensation benefits, grants to
aboriginal peoples and their organizations, public service pensions
and pensions paid under the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans.
Current transfers from non-residents to government
Withholding taxes paid by non-residents to the Government of Canada.
Current transfers from non-residents to persons
Pensions paid by foreign governments to Canadian residents plus remittances
by non-residents to Canadian residents.
Current transfers from persons and unincorporated businesses to
government
Income taxes, contributions to social insurance plans and other current
transfers.
Current transfers from persons to corporations
The transfer portion of interest on the consumer debt.
Current transfers from persons to non-residents
Remittances by Canadian residents (particularly religious and charitable
organizations) to non-residents and withholding taxes paid abroad.
Direct taxes
Current transfers to government from persons, unincorporated businesses,
corporations and government business enterprises in the form of taxes
on income from employment, property, holding gains or any other source.
Direct taxes from persons are recorded on a cash basis, and those from
corporations and government business enterprises, on an accrual basis.
Direct taxes from persons
Income taxes, succession duties and estate taxes paid by persons and
unincorporated businesses.
Dividends
Income payable and receivable in respect of corporate equities (cash
dividends) and further equity participation in corporate enterprises
(stock dividends).
Economic territory
The economic territory of a country encompasses the geographic territory,
plus the air space, territorial waters and continental shelf, as well
as its territorial enclaves abroad (embassies, consulates, military
bases...).
Exports and imports of goods and services
Current receipts and payments arising out of transactions in moveable
goods and services between residents and non- residents. Services include
travel, freight and shipping, business services, government transactions,
financial intermediation and other services.
Factor cost
A valuation reflecting the cost of the factors of production (labour
and capital). It corresponds to the value remaining after the deduction
from market prices of all applicable taxes and subsidies. See market
prices.
Farm inventories
Farm output stored on farms; includes grains, tobacco, potatoes and
livestock.
Final domestic demand
The sum of personal expenditure on consumer goods and services, net
government current expenditure on goods and services, government gross
fixed capital formation and business gross fixed capital formation.
Fixed-weighted price indexes
Also known as "Laspeyres" indexes, these are price indexes
where a fixed pattern of expenditure from some base period is used to
aggregate the detailed price indexes in each period.
Foreign investments
All marketable financial instruments (bonds, short-term paper and shares)
which are liabilities of the non-resident sector (foreign governments
and corporations) and assets of domestic sectors.
Government business enterprises
Government enterprises and agencies which operate on a profit or cost
recovery basis and whose motivation is similar to that of private enterprises.
Their total profits (net of losses) are recorded in GDP, while only
the profits remitted to government are recorded in the government income
and outlay account, under government investment income. The difference
between these two measures, retained earnings, forms part of business
sector saving.
Government current expenditure on goods and services
All current outlays for goods and services by the government sector,
including wages and salaries of government employees. It also includes
expenditure on weapons for defence and an imputation for the depreciation
of government fixed assets. It is recorded before deduction of revenues
from sales of goods and services in the government income and outlay
account, and after deduction of these revenues in GDP (net government
current expenditure on goods and services).
Government investment income
In GDP, includes interest income of public service pension plans, other
interest and dividend income of governments and royalties. In the government
income and outlay account, it also includes the profits of government
business enterprises remitted to government. See government business
enterprises.
Government sales of goods and services
Revenues from the sale of goods and services, such as water charges,
landing fees and charges for government documents.
Government sector
All departments, agencies, and funds (budgetary and non-budgetary) of
the federal, provincial and local levels of government, as well as crown
corporations which receive more than 50% of their revenues in grants
from their parent governments. Also included are school boards, universities,
non-profit colleges, hospitals, non-profit residential care facilities,
as well as the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans.
Grain in commercial channels
Grain in the hands of the Canadian Wheat Board or private grain dealers.
Gross Domestic Product
The total unduplicated value of the goods and services produced in the
economic territory of a country or region during a given period. GDP
can be measured three ways: as total incomes earned in current production,
as total final sales of current production, or as total net values added
in current production. It can be valued either at factor cost or at
market prices.
Gross Fixed Capital Formation
Expenditures by the government and business sectors on buildings, engineering
construction and machinery and equipment. Includes imports of used machinery
and equipment, which constitute additions to domestic capital stock,
and transfer costs on the sale of existing fixed assets (i.e. real estate
commissions). Comprises three broad categories: residential structures,
non-residential structures and machinery and equipment. Government fixed
capital formation includes spending on non-military defence buildings
and equipment. Abbreviated as fixed capital in the capital and
financial account. Synonym of investment in fixed capital.
Gross National Product
A measure of income equal to the Gross Domestic Product at market prices,
plus investment income received from non-residents, less investment
income paid to non-residents.
Holding gains and losses
Additions to or subtractions from income which result from selling an
asset for more or less than its purchase price. As holding gains and
losses are not related to current production, they are excluded from
GDP through the inventory valuation adjustment.
Households
A group of persons who share the same living accommodation, pool some,
or all of their income and wealth and consume certain goods and services
collectively. They may engage in any other kind of economic activity.
Implicit price indexes
Also known as variable-weighted or "Paasche" indexes (although
not strictly of the Paasche type), these price indexes are a by-product
of the deflation procedure, obtained by dividing an expenditure series
expressed at current prices by the corresponding series expressed at
constant prices.
Imports of goods and services
See exports and imports of goods and services.
Income and outlay account
This account shows, for each major sector, all sources of current income
(production, receipts of property income and other transfers) and all
current outlays (expenditure on goods and services, payments of property
income and other transfers), as well as saving, equal to a sector’s
income less its outlay.
Indirect taxes
Taxes which add to the cost of production and are likely to be reflected
in market prices paid by the purchaser, such as sales and excise taxes,
import duties and property taxes.
Inheritances and migrants' funds
Capital brought to Canada by immigrants at the time of arrival or transferred
outside Canada by emigrants at time of departure, or intended to be
transferred at a later date, plus bequests to Canadian residents from
non-residents or vice-versa.
Interest and miscellaneous investment income
Investment income of persons, except dividends, plus government investment
income, less net investment income of persons and governments from non-residents,
less the transfer portion of interest on the consumer debt, less the
interest on the public debt.
Interest on the consumer debt
Interest paid by persons on account of liabilities incurred to finance
personal expenditure on consumer goods and services. Consists of two
parts: the administrative expenses, representing the cost of rendering
services to borrowers, and the remaining "transfer portion".
Interest on the public debt
Interest payments on liabilities of the government sector.
Inventory valuation adjustment
The difference between the change in inventory book values and the value
of physical change in inventories, which is a measure of the net holding
gain or loss realized by business as a result of price changes. Holding
gains and losses on inventories are present in corporation profits and
other income aggregates, and must be removed in order to measure the
value of current production.
Investment in fixed capital
Synonym of gross fixed capital formation.
Investment in inventories
Change in the physical volume of business and government inventories,
valued at the average market prices of the period. Business inventories
consist of two categories:
a) non-farm inventories and
b) farm inventories and grain in commercial channels
Government inventories include only uranium stocks, up to 1981, and
those held by federal government commodity agencies, such as the Canadian
Dairy Commission. Abbreviated as inventories in the capital and
financial account.
Investment income of persons
Interest on deposits, bonds, mortgages, etc. and royalties paid by corporations,
governments and non-residents to persons, plus investment income accumulating
on their behalf in trusteed pension plans and life insurance funds,
or on behalf of other associations of individuals. Excludes dividends.
Investment income paid to non-residents
Investment income payments on Canadian liabilities to non-residents,
inclusive of any applicable withholding taxes. Includes interest, dividends
and other payments such as net expenses of Canadian banks from foreign
currency transactions and net revenues of foreign insurance companies
from insurance operations in Canada.
Investment income received from non-residents
Investment income earned by Canadian residents on their assets abroad,
inclusive of any applicable withholding taxes. Includes interest, dividends
and other receipts such as net earnings of Canadian banks from foreign
currency transactions and net revenues of Canadian insurance companies
from insurance operations abroad.
Labour income
The sum of wages and salaries plus supplementary labour income.
Life insurance and pensions
Liability of life insurance companies and trusteed pension plans to
policyholders or beneficiaries and federal government liability with
respect to annuities sold under the Government Annuities Act. Asset
of policy holders or beneficiaries.
Loans
Financial instrument comprising Bank loans and Other loans
Negotiated loans made by chartered banks and other financial institutions.
Machinery and equipment
Capital expenditures on durable, tangible goods with an expected service
life of one year or more, such as furniture, motor vehicles, office
machines and equipment not permanently installed (permanently built-in
equipment belongs to non-residential construction). Includes installation
and delivery costs.
Market prices
A valuation expressed in terms of the prices actually paid by the purchaser,
that is, after all applicable taxes and subsidies. See factor cost.
Military pay and allowances
The part of labour income consisting of payments to members of the Armed
Forces serving in Canada or abroad. Includes military pay, allow- ances
and the employer’s social contributions. Excludes veterans' allowances,
treated as transfer payments.
Mortgages
Negotiated loans and agreements of sale secured by real property, mostly
residential buildings. Includes first, second and third mortgages. Mortgages
are characterized by blended repayments, usually monthly, of principal
and interest.
Net acquisition of existing
assets
A sector’s purchases less sales of used fixed assets and land.
Business purchases less sales of natural resources, resource rights
and intangible assets are also included. Abbreviated as existing
assets
Net capital transfers
Capital transfers from other sectors less capital transfers to other
sectors.
Net domestic product at factor cost
The sum of all incomes arising from production, or ownership of assets
used in production, within the economic territory of a country or region.
Includes labour income, profits before taxes, interest and miscellaneous
investment income, accrued net income of farm operators from farm production,
net income of non-farm unincorporated business, including rent, and
the inventory valuation adjustment. Differs from GDP at factor cost
in that it excludes capital consumption allowances.
Net financial investment
The net lending (or borrowing) of a sector can be measured either through
incomes and expenditures or through financial transactions. Under the
financial transactions approach, net lending is called net financial
investment. It is equal to a sector’s transactions in financial
assets less its transactions in liabilities. See net lending and
capital and financial account.
Net income of non-farm unincorporated business, including rent
Earnings of unincorporated proprietors, except farm operators, from
their own business. Includes the net income of unincorporated businesses
and self-employed individuals, as well as the net rental income of persons.
Net income received by farm operators from farm production
Gross proceeds from the sale of farm products, plus subsidies on a cash
basis, plus the imputed value of farm output consumed by farming households,
plus invest- men in farm inventories, less farm operating expenses and
depreciation on farm buildings and equipment. Excludes other types of
income, such as net rent or interest receipts, and profits of incorporated
farms. See accrued net income of farm operators from farm production.
Net inheritances and migrants' funds
Funds brought to Canada by immigrants, less funds transferred outside
Canada by emigrants.
Net investment income from non-residents
Investment income received from, less investment income paid to, non-
residents.
Net lending
The net lending (or borrowing) of a sector can be measured either through
incomes and expenditures or through financial transactions. Under the
income and expenditure approach, net lending is the difference between
internally generated funds and outlays on non-financial capital. A sector’s
net lending equals its saving, plus its capital consumption allowances
and net capital transfers from non-residents, less its investment in
fixed capital and inventories. See net financial investment and
capital and financial account.
Net national income at factor cost
Net domestic product at factor cost plus net investment income from
non- residents.
Net rental income
Earnings of persons, after expenses, arising from the ownership of residential
property, whether rented or owner-occupied, and from the rental of non-
residential property.
Non-farm inventories
Inventories of raw materials, goods- in-process and finished products.
Non-financial capital acquisition
The gross fixed capital formation of a sector, plus its investment in
inventories and its net acquisition of existing assets. Does not apply
to the non-resident sector which, by definition, can only engage in
financial investment.
Non-resident sector
All transactors who do not have a centre of economic interest (a dwelling,
a business location) in the economic territory of Canada. By definition,
non- residents can only engage in financial investment. Any transactor
making non-financial investment is deemed to be a resident.
Non-residential structures
Construction of industrial, commercial and institutional buildings,
such as plants, warehouses, shopping centres, office buildings, schools
and hospitals, plus construction of highways, bridges, railway tracks,
canals, waterworks, sewage systems, dams, hydro or thermal generating
plants, telephone lines, oil and gas facilities, etc. Includes new construction,
conversions resulting in a structural change, major renovations, permanently
built-in equipment and site preparation.
Non-residential structures and equipment
The sum of business investment in non-residential structures and in
machinery and equipment.
Official reserves
The sum of a) official holdings of gold and foreign exchange (U.S. dollars
and deposits in other convertible currencies), b) loans to or from the
International Monetary Fund on general account, and c) special drawing
rights.
Other current transfers from persons to government
Transfers not classified as direct taxes. Includes hospital and medical
care premiums, various licences and permits, fines and penalties, as
well as donations to entities within the government sector.
Other financial assets / Other liabilities
Various items not included under other financial instruments, such as
accrued interest, interest receivable or payable and prepaid expenses.
Outside Canada
Embassies and other Canadian government offices abroad which are part
of the territory of Canada.
Personal disposable income
Personal income less current transfers to government.
Personal expenditure on consumer goods and services
Household spending on new consumer goods and on consumer services, plus
any mark-up on used goods. Operating expenses of associations of individuals
serving households are also included, under consumer services.
Personal income
The sum of all incomes received by persons residing in Canada, whether
factor earnings from current production or current transfers from other
sectors, plus the investment income that associations of individuals
accumulate on their own behalf or on behalf of persons.
Personal saving
Personal disposable income less personal expenditure on consumer goods
and services, less current transfers from persons to corporations and
to non- residents.
Personal sector
All persons, households and associations of individuals serving households.
Persons and unincorporated business sector
Transactors of the personal sector plus those of the unincorporated
business sector. In the capital and financial account, transactions
of these two sectors are consolidated. In addition, in this account,
although credit unions, life insurance companies and trusteed pension
plans appear as sub-sectors of the corporate and government business
enterprise sector, their transactions in financial assets are balanced
by liabilities which, in turn, are recorded as assets of the persons
and unincorporated business sector.
Reinvested earnings of direct
investment enterprises
Profits earned on, less dividends received from, direct foreign investment.
From 1961, equity income from direct foreign investment is recorded
on an accrual rather than cash basis in the Balance of International
Payments. This gives rise to an additional reconciliation item between
the former and the National Economic and Financial Accounts, in which
this change has not been incorporated.
Residential structures
Construction of dwellings (subdivided into single, semi-detached, row
housing and apartments), garages, cottages and mobile homes. Includes
new construction, conversions resulting in a structural change and major
renovations (together referred to as "alterations and improvements"),
permanently built-in equipment, site preparation and transfer costs
such as real estate commissions.
Saving
The current income of a sector, less its current expenditure. Includes
current transfers but excludes capital consumption allowances and capital
transfers. Referred to as gross saving when it includes capital consumption
allowances.
Sector accounts
The quarterly national accounts now include the full sector accounts,
previously only released on an annual basis. These sector accounts record
the income, outlay, saving, non-financial and financial investment,
borrowing and net lending for the four main sectors: a) persons and
unincorporated businesses; b) corporations and government business enterprises;
c) government; and d) non-residents. See income and outlay account
and capital and financial account.
Shares
Financial instrument consisting of common and preferred shares (including
term preferred shares and mutual fund shares), plus contributed surplus.
Stock issued by a government business enterprise to a parent government
is classified to government claims.
Short-term paper
Marketable financial instrument comprising:
Government of Canada short-term paper
Treasury bills, which are notes of original term to maturity of less
than one year, issued at a discount and sold at auction every week;
also includes Canada bills issued in foreign currency.
Other short-term paper
Notes of original term to maturity of one year or less, issued at a
discount by a variety of financial and non-financial institutions; includes
provincial and municipal Treasury bills.
Statistical discrepancy
Double-entry bookkeeping is fundamental in national accounting and several
aggregates, such as GDP and net lending, can be calculated in two or
more ways. In principle, all the measures of an aggregate are equal.
In practice, differences invariably arise between them due to imperfections
in basic statistics and estimation techniques. This difference is called
a statistical discrepancy and serves as the balancing item between two
theoretically equal aggregates. It can be recorded as is, like the discrepancy
between the two estimates of net lending or it can be divided in two,
one half being subtracted from the higher estimate and the other, added
to the lower one, like the discrepancy between income-based and expenditure-
based GDP.
Subsidies
Transfers from government to the business sector toward current costs
of production. These transfers represent additions to the income of
producers from current production.
Supplementary labour income
Employers’ social contributions, either compulsory or voluntary.
Includes retirement allowances and contributions to employment insurance,
the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans, other pension plans, workers' compensation,
medicare, dental plans, short- and long-term disability insurance, etc.
Surplus or deficit of Canada on current transactions with non-residents
Exports of goods and services less imports of goods and services, plus
net investment income from non-residents and net current transfers from
non- residents.
Surplus or deficit on current account in the "Canadian Balance
of International Payments"
The surplus or deficit of Canada on current transactions with non-residents
plus net reinvested earnings on direct investment.
Trade accounts receivable/payable
Short-term credit advanced or received in the ordinary course of business
by suppliers or buyers of business goods and services.
Transactors
Economic agents who engage in transactions involving the purchase and
sale of goods and services and the payment and receipt of factor incomes
and transfers.
Transfers
Cash, good, service, or asset other than cash transferred by one transactor
to another without counterpart, that is, without the donor receiving
anything in return. See current transfers and capital transfers.
Unincorporated business
sector
All business transactors whose legal form of organization is not the
corporation. Includes independent business operators, self-employed
farmers, fishermen and professionals and unincorporated landlords (including
those renting to themselves).
Wages and salaries
Total remuneration, in cash or in kind, paid to employees in return
for work done. It is recorded on a gross basis, before any deduction
for income taxes, pensions, unemployment insurance and other social
insurance schemes. Also includes other forms of compensation, namely
commissions, tips, bonuses, directors' fees and allowances such as those
for holidays and sick leave, as well as military pay and allowances.
Excludes employers’ social contributions, which are treated as
supplementary labour income.
Withholding taxes
Taxes withheld by the Government of Canada on selected income and service
payments to non- residents, or withheld by foreign governments on selected
income and service payments to Canadian residents.
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