1) WEO Database
Q. How often is the online WEO database updated?
A. The WEO publication and database are updated and published twice a year, usually in April and October as documentation for meetings of the International Monetary and Financial Committee, and forms the main instrument of the IMF's global surveillance activities.
Q. What is the WEO Update and how can I access the data?
A. In response to the growing demand for more frequent forecast updates, the WEO Update is published in January and July between the two main WEO publications released usually in April and October. The WEO Update is distributed on a complimentary basis and provides a sub-set of revised estimates for key indicators. You may access the latest WEO Update from http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2009/update/02/index.htm. Limited data from the WEO Update are available from the most recent WEO database.
Q. Is there a way I can receive notification via e-mail when a new WEO report is released?
A. For WEO updates and news, you can subscribe to our free e-mail notification at https://www.imf.org/external/cntpst/(ucpvwhi1wxxnr2rhlz4mmq45)/index.aspx. To unsubscribe to e-mail notifications, see https://www.imf.org/external/cntpst/(ucpvwhi1wxxnr2rhlz4mmq45)/signinmodify.aspx
Q. What changes have been made to the WEO database in this issue (October 2009) compared to the previous edition? Where can I find a list of changes that have been made over time?
A. A list of the changes that have been implemented with each WEO edition are listed in the Changes to the Database page.
Q. Is there any way you can save your query?
A. Unfortunately, this feature is not available at this time. You can, however bookmark the url address when you download the data. After you complete a query where you have a preview of the final report that you would like to download, you can bookmark the url in the address bar of your window as shown below:
http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2009/02/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2004&ey=2008&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=193%2C158%2C122%2C542%2C124%2C137%2C156%2C138%2C423%2C196%2C128%2C142%2C172%2C182%2C132%2C576%2C134%2C961%2C174%2C184%2C532%2C144%2C176%2C146%2C178%2C528%2C436%2C112%2C136%2C111&s=NGDP_RPCH&grp=0&a=&pr.x=96&pr.y=12
Please note that the location of the WEO changes every publication. In this example, for the next WEO, you will have to change 2009/02 to 2010/01. The first four numbers represent the year of the publication. The second set of numbers refers to the month of publication, 01 for April and 02 for October. You should get to the same table but with the updated data.
Q. Could I use WEO data for my written work?
A. You are welcome to use WEO data for written work as long as you cite the publication/database accordingly. For copyright and usage information on IMF work see http://www.imf.org/external/terms.htm.
Q. What explains differences between WEO and IFS data?
A. The data appearing in the World Economic Outlook are provided to the Research Department at the time of the WEO exercise, not on a continual basis. The historical data and projections are based on the information gathered by the IMF country desk officers in the context of their missions to the countries and ongoing analysis of the evolving situation in member countries; projections are staff estimates. The data published in the Statistics Department's International Financial Statistics are gathered as part of an ongoing data collection effort in which member country statistical agencies provide public statistics to the IMF. Because of differences in data collection techniques, methodological issues, focus, and timing, the data in the International Financial Statistics and the World Economic Outlook may differ.
Q. I am getting an error when I click on the option to use a comma instead of a period to separate whole numbers from decimals. In this instance, the thousands separator remains a comma and there is no way for me to know the difference between a thousands separator and a decimal separator. Is there a way to resolve this?
A. The problem is not due to the way the data is downloaded but in the way your spreadsheet program reads in the data. The query file you download is a tab separated file (tsv). If you click the option to use a comma as the decimal separator, the number 12,123.54 is saved as 12123,54 in this tsv file. However, when you bring it into your spreadsheet program, say Excel, it reads this comma as a digit separator and not a decimal separator, which results in the error you identified. To correct this, please check to make sure that in Excel > Tools > Options > International Tab you have the following specified:
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2) Data Availability and Coverage
Q. How do I know if data are actual, preliminary, or projected?
A. In the table report at the end of a query, the shaded cells indicate IMF staff estimates. Non-shaded cells are therefore actual data. This information is also provided in the Country/Series-specific data notes option you may choose to append to the report. Finally, the downloadable tab-delimited file at the end of a query will always include a column specifying the year of the latest actual data. We do not provide this information for WEO country groups' data. Note that the shaded/projection years in the World Economic Outlook report do not match the shaded/projection years in the online database because the purpose of the shading in the report is to emphasize the projection years common to all countries.
Q. Do you have higher frequency data such as quarterly or monthly data?
A. We do not publish monthly or quarterly data in the online WEO.
Q. Do you have data prior to 1980?
A. No. We have stopped providing data prior to 1980 due to difficulties in verifying the accuracy of the historical data. However, you may find more historical coverage in our sister publication the International Financial Statistics, available from most university libraries. For more information, see http://ifs.apdi.net/imf/about.asp.
Q. Do you have long- and/or medium-term forecasts?
A. We do provide medium-term projections for selected indicators but no long-term projections.
Q. Are there any other data available besides what is downloadable from the WEO database?
A. No. All of the data that can be released to the public are already incorporated into the WEO online database. For more IMF data, see the "Data and Statistics" section of the IMF website (http://www.imf.org/external/np/ds/matrix.htm).
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3) Specific Data Series
Q. What is the constant price base year for GDP? Is it constant across all countries?
A. The information on base years for national accounts at constant prices is gathered from IMF country desk officers and is country-specific. This information is provided in the Country Information summary page or Country/Series-specific data notes option you may choose to append to the report at the end of a query.
Q. Is there a real global GDP dollar series that can be used to compare economy size across countries?
A. We do not report the value of constant price GDP in a common currency (say U.S. dollars) for the world. However, we do publish a world GDP indexed in 2000, which does measure changes in the world output. The index is constructed as a weighted average of real GDP growth rates for all reporting countries. A country's weight for this average is its share of nominal GDP at purchasing-power-parity (PPP) exchange rates.
One way to convert an individual country’s real GDP series to U.S. dollars is to do the following:
1) Take the current GDP level for that country in terms of U.S. dollars in the year specified as that country’s base year (see Country Information).
- Series: Gross domestic product, current prices
- U.S. dollars
2) Extend the series from the base year value forwards and backwards by applying the growth rates of real GDP in local currency.
- Series: Gross domestic product, constant prices
- Annual percent change
By following this procedure, a country’s real GDP is in terms of U.S. dollars but maintains the growth rates of the real GDP series.
Q. How often are GDP estimates revised?
A. The number of revisions to each country's GDP data is country-specific. We collect historical data and projections from each IMF country desk officer, and in turn, the national authorities provide the country desk officer with their most current updates. Although there may be several iterations, each publication takes into account the most recent revisions available, prior to publication.
Q. For the countries that adopted the euro, how did you convert the series expressed in national currency?
A. The WEO used the fixed conversion rates between the euro and the currencies of the member states adopting the euro to transform the data prior to 1999. The following are the irrevocable euro conversion rates as adopted by the Council of the European Union on January 1, 1999 unless otherwise noted:
| 1 euro |
= |
13.7603 |
Austrian schillings |
| |
= |
40.3399 |
Belgian francs |
| |
= |
0.585274 |
Cyprus pound (established on January 1, 2008) |
| |
= |
1.95583 |
Deutsche mark |
| |
= |
5.94573 |
Finnish markkaa |
| |
= |
6.55957 |
French francs |
| |
= |
340.750 |
Greek drachma (established on January 1, 2001) |
| |
= |
0.787564 |
Irish pound |
| |
= |
1,936.27 |
Italian lire |
| |
= |
40.3399 |
Luxembourg francs |
| |
= |
0.42930 |
Maltese lira (established on January 1, 2008) |
| |
= |
2.20371 |
Netherlands guilders |
| |
= |
200.482 |
Portuguese escudos |
| |
= |
30.1260 |
Slovak koruna (established on January 1, 2009) |
| |
= |
239.640 |
Slovenian tolars (established on January 1, 2007) |
| |
= |
166.386 |
Spanish pesetas |
Q. What is the difference between General Government Gross and Net Debt?
A. General government gross debt refers to recognized financial liabilities of the general government that are serviced through interest and/or principal payments. Examples are debt securities issued (such as bills and bonds), loans obtained, and other accounts payable. Guaranteed debt is excluded from government gross debt until called. On the other hand, general government net debt refers to gross debt of the general government minus its financial assets in the form of debt instruments. Examples of financial assets in the form of debt instruments are government’s investment in other entities’ debt securities (such as bills and bonds), loans extended by government, and other accounts receivable. For more information, see the Country/Series-specific notes at the end of your query. To avoid double counting, the data are based on a consolidated account (eliminating liabilities and assets between components of the government, such as budgetary units and social security funds).
Q. What explains differences in the Financial Flows table in the April and October WEO editions?
A. The differences between April and October editions of the Financial Flows table are mainly due to the data collection timing during the WEO exercise. For example, data for many countries in the April edition are still considered preliminary, while data in the October edition are considered final. Furthermore, these data are difficult to estimate as they continue to change over time.
Q. Why does the world current account balance not equal to zero?
A. In principle, since one country's export is another country's import, current account balances across the world should sum to zero. In practice, however, this is not the case. While a discrepancy is difficult to analyze by its very nature, there is broad agreement that the global current account discrepancy likely reflects in part the following economic factors:
- transportation lags, if exports are recorded in one year, while the corresponding imports are not recorded until the next;
- underreporting of investment income, partly related to tax evasion and the growth of offshore centers;
- asymmetric valuation, where the export and import of the same good are valued at different prices; and
- data quality issues, especially for transportation services and workers' remittances.
Q. Does the WEO publish exchange rate data?
A. The WEO does not provide exchange rates data. You can download official exchange rates data for selected currencies from IMF's "Data and Statistics" section (http://www.imf.org/external/data.htm#data) under the heading "Exchange Rates Data." Finally, the IMF's International Financial Statistics publication (IFS) provides this data as well. The IFS is available from most university libraries. For more information, see http://ifs.apdi.net/imf/about.asp.
Q. Why does gross domestic product based on purchasing-power-parity (PPP) valuation of country GDP divided by the total for the world not equal the GDP at PPP share of the world total?
A. Gross domestic product based on purchasing-power-parity (PPP) share of world total is used to calculate weighted averages of country groups (see question below). It is based on growth rates of nominal GDP and domestic prices reported in the October 2008 WEO and held fixed for both the April and October 2009 databases. Gross domestic product based on purchasing-power-parity (PPP) valuation of country GDP is revised for each publication to reflect latest estimates of nominal GDP and domestic price growth.
Q. Is there a list of WEO countries that are chain-weighted?
A. You may find the list of chain-weighted countries on the Assumptions and Data Conventions page. In addition, this information is included in the Country/Series-specific notes that you can choose to append to your download report at the end of a query. At this time, this only applies to the "Gross Domestic Product, constant prices" series.
Q. Where can I find more information on the IMF Commodity Prices?
A. The IMF Commodity Prices are provided by the Energy and Commodities Surveillance Unit of the Research Department. For more information, see http://www.imf.org/external/np/res/commod/index.asp. You may also e-mail them at commodities@imf.org.
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4) WEO Country Groups and Purchasing Power Parity (PPP)
Q. Is there a reference page available listing which countries are included in the aggregates—for example, advanced economies, ASEAN-5, etc.?
A. The list of Country Groups can be found on the Groups and Aggregates page. In addition, the countries/territories included in the different WEO Country Groups are available from Step 1 of the "By Country Groups" query. Hover your mouse on the 
icon beside the Country Group you are interested in or click on the Country Group name to view its country composition.
Q. How does the WEO categorize advanced versus emerging and developing economies?
A. The main criteria used by the WEO to classify the world into advanced and emerging economies are (1) per capita income level, (2) export diversification—so oil exporters that have high per capita GDP would not make the advanced classification because around 70% of its exports are oil, and (3) degree of integration into the global financial system. In the first criteria, we look at an average over a number of years given that volatility (due to say oil production) can have a marked year-to-year effect. Note, however, that these are not the only factors considered in deciding the classification of countries. As it says in the WEO Statistical Appendix, "Rather than being based on strict criteria, economic or otherwise, this classification has evolved over time with the objective of facilitating analysis by providing a reasonably meaningful organization of data." Reclassification only happens when something marked changes or the case for change becomes overwhelming. For example, Malta joining the euro area was a significant change in circumstances that warranted a reclassification from an emerging and developing economy to an advanced economy.
Q. What is a "purchasing-power-parity (PPP)" exchange rate?
A. The Purchasing-power-parity (PPP) between two countries is the rate at which the currency of one country needs to be converted into that of a second country to ensure that a given amount of the first country's currency will purchase the same volume of goods and services in the second country as it does in the first. In the WEO online database, it is expressed as local currency per U.S. dollar. The advantages and disadvantages of using PPP-based exchange rates rather than market exchange rates are discussed in the Finance & Development article "PPP Versus the Market, Which Weight Matters?" (March 2007) and Box 1.2 of the September 2003 World Economic Outlook (WEO). For the latest PPP weights revision, please see Figure 1.16 from Chapter 1 of the April 2008 WEO. For 2003 PPP weights revision, please see Box A2 from the April 2004 WEO. For the 2000 PPP weights revision, please see Box A1 from the May 2000 WEO.
The International Comparisons Program (ICP) is a global statistical initiative that produces internationally comparable Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) estimates. The PPP exchange rate estimates, maintained and published by the World Bank, the OECD, and other international organizations, are used by WEO to calculate its own PPP weight time series. For more information, you can go to the World Bank website. Under the section "Statistics and Data", there is a link to ICP (International Comparison Program) that is about PPP surveys and methodologies.
Q. What is "Gross domestic product based on purchasing-power-parity (PPP) valuation of country GDP"?
A. It is calculated by dividing a country's nominal GDP in its own currency by the PPP exchange rate. The PPP exchange rate comes from a calculation that starts with the PPP exchange reported by the International Comparison Project (ICP) for years 2003-2005, which is then extended backwards and forwards by the growth in relative GDP deflators (the deflator of a country divided by the deflator of the United States). Differences in PPP exchange rate estimates with other organizations must be confirmed from the providers of those estimates.
Q. How is GDP at PPP exchange rates used to calculate WEO country group data? Will I be able to calculate aggregated data based on a different country grouping using PPP exchange rates?
A. Country Group data or aggregates relating to the domestic economy, whether growth rates or ratios, are weighted by GDP valued at purchasing-power-parities (PPPs) as a share of world total or country group GDP. Annual inflation rates are simple percent change from previous years ((CPIt/CPIt-1)-1), except for other emerging and developing economies where the rates are based on logarithmic differences (log(CPIt)-log(CPIt-1)). This exception to the methodology only applies for the inflation series and only whenever a group comprises of countries belonging to the other emerging and developing economies group. Therefore, for the advanced economies, the conventional methodology for aggregating is used.
For example, the consumer price index for all advanced economies is calculated by multiplying each country's CPI inflation times its share (PPP-weight) of the group's total "gross domestic product based on purchasing-power-parity (PPP) valuation of country GDP." A country's share (or weight) is its nominal GDP at PPP exchange rates divided by the sum of nominal GDP at PPP exchange rates for all countries in the group. Summing the product of each country's inflation rate and PPP-GDP weight produces a weighted average growth rate of consumer prices for one year. After the weighted average growth rates for all years have been calculated, they are transformed into an index. You can follow this example to create your own aggregated data based on your own country groups. Below is the formula for creating a growth rate weighted average:
For further detail on the PPP-based weights, follow this link: http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/wefs/1993/eng/studies/pdf/93WEOss3.pdf.
Q. What other methodologies are used to calculate WEO country group (aggregated) data?
A. 1) Aggregates for unemployment and employment rates are weighted by labor force as a share of group labor force.
2) Aggregates relating to the external economy are sums of individual country data after conversion to U.S. dollars at the average market exchange rates for balance of payments data and at end-of-year market exchange rates for debt-denominated in non-U.S. dollars.
3) Aggregates of changes in foreign trade volumes and prices, however, are arithmetic averages of percentage changes for individual countries weighted by the U.S. dollar value of exports or imports as a share of total world or country group exports or imports.
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