Supply and use tables

The SLSA is constructed as a supply and use table.

Supply and use tables (SUTs) are a powerful tool with which to compare and contrast data from various sources and improve the coherence of the economic information system. They permit an analysis of products and industries at a very detailed level within a consistent, internationally recognized economic measurement framework[3].

SUTs articulate the supply and uses of all products in the economy. A stylized version is shown in Table 1. The supply of a product can originate from domestic production or imports and is expressed in purchaser prices (the price paid by the final consumer of the good) after including margins for transport, trade, sales taxes and tariffs.

There are four broad categories of uses of products. Products can be used by businesses for the production of other goods or services (intermediate consumption); by households, government or non-profit institutions for final consumption; by businesses or governments as an asset for ongoing production (investment or capital formation); or to satisfy non-resident demand via exports.

SLSA Table 1

Description for Figure 1

This image of a table shows the supply and use of products by broad categories. The supply of products can originate from domestic production and imports. Margins are also estimated by products to allow for a valuation at purchaser’s prices. The uses of products include intermediate consumption, final consumption, capital formation and exports.

In addition to presenting a complete articulation of product balances in the economy, SUTs bring together three different approaches to calculate gross domestic product (GDP):

  1. The production approach, where gross value added is the balancing item after subtracting intermediate inputs from output.
  2. The income approach, where GDP is calculated as the sum of the various types of returns to the factors of production-for example, operating surplus of firms and compensation of employees.
  3. The expenditure approach, where GDP is measured using the basic macroeconomic formula, GDP = final household consumption + investment + government consumption + exports - imports.

By bringing together the three GDP measures and the product balances, SUTs allow us to compare the share of foreign demand and the share of domestic demand. We can examine how goods are produced. We can link this information with labour market data to understand jobs and compensation. We can build multipliers to understand the impacts of shocks on the economy. In short, SUTs are the most comprehensive analytical tool with which to examine the activities of a nation’s economy.

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