World Economic Outlook Database April 2003

World Economic Outlook

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Canonical URL: World Economic Outlook Database April 2003

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Overview

The WEO database is created during the biannual World Economic Outlook (WEO) exercise, which begins in January and June of each year and results in the WEO publication released in April and September.
The WEO exercise is coordinated by the World Economic Studies Division in the Research Department.
Projections and analysis in the World Economic Outlook are an integral element of the IMF’s surveillance of economic development and policies in member countries and of the global economic system.
Projections are prepared by country desk economists on the basis of internationally consistent assumptions about world economic activity, exchange rates, and conditions in international financial and commodity markets.
For approximately 50 of the largest economies, referred to as Group A countries and which account for 90 percent of world output, projections are updated for each WEO exercise.

Data series and coverage

Annual data CSV files available for:
- Real Gross Domestic Product (annual percent change)
- All countries CSV
- Advanced economies CSV
- Developing and transition countries CSV
- Regional group aggregates CSV
- Real Gross Domestic Product, Constant Prices (billions of local currency units)
- Gross Domestic Product, Current Prices (billions of local currency units)
- Gross Domestic Product, Current Prices (billions of U.S. dollars)
- Per Capita Gross Domestic Product, Constant Prices (local currency per person)
- Per Capita Gross Domestic Product, Current Prices (local currency per person)
- Per Capita Gross Domestic Product, Current Prices (U.S. dollars per person)
- Inflation (annual percent change)
- General Government Fiscal Balances (percent of GDP)
- Output Gaps (percent of potential GDP)
- General Government Structural Balances (percent of potential GDP)
- Net Capital Flows (billions of US dollars)
- Developing and transition country groups CSV
Group A country world aggregates provided from 1970 for:
- Gross domestic product (values at market exchange rates and purchasing power parity [PPP] exchange rates)
- World trade volume of goods and services (annual percent change)
- World exports of goods and services (billions of U.S. dollars)
- World imports of goods and services (billions of U.S. dollars)
Notes on specific data items and exceptions:
- Data for inflation are annual percentage change averages for the year, not end-of-period data.
- Domestic economy series are expressed in billions of national currency units.
- External accounts series are expressed in billions of U.S. dollars.
- Indexes are generally based on 1995.
- Dates are expressed as the four digit year followed by "A1" which designates the annual frequency.
- WEO group aggregate domestic economy series are in index form; external account series are in billions of U.S. dollars.
- Shares of Aggregate GDP Based on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) are expressed as percent of the world total and are used for WEO country group composites.

Changes to the database (history highlighted)

April 2003: Growth and inflation projections for Serbia and Montenegro are included.
September 2002: Growth and inflation projections are included for all countries through 2003.
May 2002: Middle East, Malta, and Turkey is replaced by the title Middle East and Turkey. The country composition remains the same.
December 2001: No changes were introduced.
October 2001: (no specific entry content provided)
May 2001:
- Greece is included in the euro area.
- Cyprus is included in Advanced Economies (previously in Middle East and Europe under Developing Countries).
- Asia is replaced by the title Developing Asia (no change in composition).
- Middle East and Europe is replaced by the title Middle East and Turkey; Cyprus is no longer included.
- Countries in Transition reorganized: Commonwealth of Independent States and Mongolia replaces Trancaucasus and central Asia; composition of Central and Eastern Europe changed (no longer includes Moldova and Ukraine).

Methodological notes and data interpretation

Historical data and projections are based on information gathered by IMF country desk economists in the context of missions and ongoing analysis; projections are staff estimates.
Differences from International Financial Statistics arise from differing data collection techniques, methodology, focus, and timing.
For developing countries, figures for recent years are IMF staff estimates; data for some countries are for fiscal years.
For countries in transition, some data refer to real net material product (NMP) or are estimates based on NMP.
Real GDP (constant prices) is expressed in billions of national currency units; the base year is country-specific.
GDP in U.S. dollars is based upon GDP in national currency and exchange rate projections provided by country desk economists for developing and transition countries; exchange rates for advanced economies are set as part of WEO assumptions.
Output gaps are calculated as actual GDP less potential GDP as a percent of potential GDP; estimates are subject to a significant margin of uncertainty.
Structural budget position is defined as the actual budget deficit (or surplus) less effects of cyclical deviations of output from potential output; indicators should be interpreted as broad orders of magnitude.
Net private capital flows comprise net direct investment, net portfolio investment, and other long- and short-term net investment flows including official and private borrowing.
"Total Emerging Markets" includes developing countries, countries in transition, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan Province of China, and Israel.
"Developing Asia" includes Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan Province of China.
"Middle East and Turkey" includes Israel and Malta.
External debt data are expressed in billions of US dollars and reflect total external debt at year end for developing and transition countries only; external debt data are not collected for advanced economies.
Change in reserves: a minus sign indicates an increase.
The sum of the current account balance, net private capital flows, net official flows, and the change in reserves equals, with the opposite sign, the sum of the capital and financial account and errors and omissions.

Country and item-specific data conventions and exceptions

Australia: domestic economy series exclude net advances (primarily privatization receipts and net policy-related lending); fiscal data exclude commonwealth government privatization receipts.
Austria: fiscal data based on ESA95 methodology, excluding swap income.
France: fiscal data adjusted for valuation changes of the foreign exchange stabilization fund.
Ireland: data exclude impact of discharging future pension liabilities of the formerly state-owned telecoms company at a cost of 1.8 percent of GDP in 1999.
Korea: fiscal data cover consolidated central government including social security funds but excluding privatization.
New Zealand: fiscal data from 1992 onward are on an accrual basis and are not strictly comparable with previous cash-based data; fiscal data exclude privatization proceeds.
Germany: estimate of the fiscal impulse for 1995 affected by assumption of Treuhandanstalt and related debt, with an estimated withdrawal of fiscal impulse amounting to just over 1 percent of GDP at the public sector level.
Norway: fiscal data exclude oil.
European Union and euro area aggregates exclude Luxembourg.
One-off receipts from sale of mobile telephone licenses are excluded for specified countries and years, including:
- Germany: 2.5 percent of GDP in 2000
- France: 0.1 percent of GDP in 2001 and 2002
- Italy: 1.2 percent of GDP in 2000
- United Kingdom: 2.4 percent of GDP in 2000
- Spain: 0.1 percent of GDP in 2000
- Netherlands: 0.7 percent of GDP in 2000
- Belgium: 0.2 percent of GDP in 2001
- Austria: 0.4 percent of GDP in 2000
- Portugal: 0.3 percent of GDP in 2000
- Ireland: 0.1 percent of GDP in 2002

Data formats, file conventions, and how to use files

Data tables are presented in Comma Delimited, CSV text file format.
Null field values are represented by the phrase "n.a." Replace "n.a." with a blank field before importing into spreadsheets/databases if required.
Key file import options:
- Data Type: Comma Delimited
- File Origin: Windows ANSI
- Text Qualifier: {"}
- Field Delimiter: {,}
- First Row: Field Names
Column and print format suggestions:
- Page Size: Legal
- Page Orientation: Landscape
- Font Size: 8 point or smaller
- Font Type: Any proportional font such as Line Printer, Arial, or Universe; a fixed font such as Times Roman or Courier will increase required line length.
- Margins: Left = 0", Right = 0" (actual margin width will be set to the lowest default value for your printer).
Guidance on retrieving and opening data:
- View CSV within a browser or open in a spreadsheet/database application.
- If importing into a spreadsheet/database, set appropriate file import options to ensure proper columnar formatting.
- If retrieving into a text editor or word processor, convert from "ASCII Text" if prompted.

Availability and dissemination

The site provides the most frequently requested information from the WEO database consistent with the data published in the World Economic Outlook.
The end dates of country-specific series correspond to those appearing in the WEO publication.
Not all data appearing in the WEO publication are disseminated through the WEO Database files; over time, additional information may be released.
Customized requests for WEO data will no longer be filled.

Contact

Queries about the WEO database should be sent to the e-mail address weo@imf.org.

Content in this bundle

References

World Economic Outlook, April 2003