| Information about the Quarterly Nominees Survey |
Availability
| Valid From: .. | 06/30/2000 |
| To: .. | Ongoing |
| Frequency: .. | Quarterly |
Design
Purpose: To measure: 1) the market value of the stock of New Zealand's equity securities and the cash and deposits held for non-residents via NZ nominee companies; and 2) the associated dividends/distributions paid to the non-residents. This data is to be incorporated into the balance of payments (BOP) and international investment position (IIP) statistics.
General Information ..
Background
The Quarterly Nominee Survey is a quarterly survey which started in the March 2000 quarter and is operated by the Balance of Payments Division of Statistics New Zealand.
The main objective of the survey is to measure the market value of the stock of NZ's equity securities and the cash and deposits held for non-residents via NZ nominee companies plus the dividends/distributions paid to the non-residents. This data is required on a quarterly basis and is to be directly incorporated into the international investment position (IIP) statement. It will also be used to derive transactions data for the balance of payments (BOP) statistics.
Other objectives of the survey are to provide:
- high quality data on the equity investment of non-residents via NZ nominee companies in each individual NZ resident company on the NZ Stock Exchange top 40. This will be combined with data from the separate new Quarterly International Investment Survey (QIIS) to provide data on the total foreign ownership of New Zealand companies. This will be both a statistical output and a validation check on data collected in the QIIS and Nominee surveys; and
- a country analysis of the non-resident investment in NZ equity and holdings of cash and deposits.
Prior to the Quarterly Nominee Survey, all data on the non-resident ownership of NZ equity securities was collected annually via the now ceased BOP Annual Capital Accounts Survey (CAS). Within CAS respondents were requested to include non-resident investment in their enterprise via nominees but this was not always reported and inconsistencies arose.
Given the move to a full quarterly financial account and the need to introduce quality improvements, the portfolio holdings of non-residents in NZ equity held via NZ nominee companies are to be collected directly from the nominees, rather than from the NZ company being invested in. This approach is used by other statistical agencies, for example, the Australian Bureau of Statistics and it provides high quality and very timely data.
Thus in the new Quarterly International Investment Survey (QIIS) questionnaire, respondents are instructed not to report liabilities which are held by non-residents via a NZ nominee. Note that the CAS collection ceased after the year ended March 2000 survey and it was replaced by QIIS which started operation in the June 2000 quarter.
Target Population
The main variable of interest is the total market value of equity securities held via NZ residents on behalf of non-residents. Therefore the target population consists of those NZ resident organisations and individuals who directly hold equity securities for non-residents. Non-residents include businesses and organisations located outside NZ and/or individuals who ordinarily reside outside NZ.
Population covered
The actual survey population covered consists of NZ nominee companies. These were sourced from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand's Austraclear membership list. Austraclear is a real time settlement system for traded debt and equity securities which members access from their premises. It provides a good frame because its members comprise of those who are actively involved in the purchase and sale of debt and equity securities, with the latter being our key variable of interest.
Note that the survey population does not include NZ resident individuals and stockbrokers, lawyers etc who may hold equity securities on behalf of non-residents.
Statistical Unit
The NZ nominee company.
Selection Unit
The NZ nominee company.
Collection Unit
The NZ nominee company.
*data not collected - see undercoverage section
Note that non-residents may also purchase/sell NZ resident equity securities directly or via non-resident nominees. This data is collected via the separate Quarterly International Investment Survey (QIIS).
Undercoverage
There is a negligible proportion of undercoverage which was identified during the population investigation. For example, some NZ stockbrokers and lawyers are involved in holding equity securities for non-residents and some NZ individuals may be doing likewise, possibly for family members who are now living overseas.
In the future, if we have any available data sources in terms of specific figures for this part, estimates will be produced for this undercoverage component.
Population and Sample Size
The investigated population size was approximately 220, however the majority of these were out of scope because they were dealing in debt securities for non-residents. The survey population size is 5 respondents i.e. the key players.
Sample Design
A purposive (non probability) sample design was used to draw the sample population for this survey. Its coverage is considered to be extensive - probably in the 95-98% range, and will be monitored. The latter will be done by using data from the QIIS, the Nominee Survey, the shareholder analysis in the company reports of those in the NZ Stock Exchange Top 40 etc. This sample design is consistent with that used in the BOP QIIS and the Managed Funds Surveys, whereby the focus is on the large respondents.
Output Variables
Output variables are pieces of individual information that can be extracted from the survey/output data. Often output variables can be cross tabulated with other output variables, for example sales by industry classification. The list below contains all current and past output variables which have been released for this survey/output.
| Variable Name | Description |
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| Portfolio investment | Portfolio investment covers transactions in equity securities and debt securities; the latter are subclassified into bonds and notes and money market instruments. Transactions covered under direct investment and reserve assets are excluded.
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| Other investment | Other investment covers trade credits, loans, currency and deposits and other accounts receivable and payable. Transactions covered under direct investment, portfolio investment or reserves are excluded. |
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| Portfolio investment income | Portfolio investment income comprises income transactions between residents and non-residents and is derived from holdings of shares, bonds, notes and money market instruments. This component is subdivided into income on equity (dividends) and income on debt (interest).
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Changes in Output Variables over time
Guide to Interpreting Data
Summary of Changes to Survey/Output ..Not applicable.
Usage and Limitations of the Data ..The country data is indicative only. Respondents are not always able to report the country where the non-resident beneficial owner resides. In such cases, they instead report the country of domicile of the non-resident investor that they immediately deal with i.e. the `first leg' of the investment. Note that the latter may be a non-resident nominee resident in a country quite different from that of their client.
Related Data Sources ..
Sampling Errors ..Unable to be calculated as it is a purposive sample.
Non-sampling errors Non-sampling errors in the survey data may result from errors in the sample frame, respondent error, mistakes during processing survey results and non-response imputation. The department adopts procedures to detect and minimise these types of errors but they may still occur and they are not quantifiable.
Caveats on Release ..The Quarterly Nominee Survey data is not separately released. Rather it is one of several data sources for some BOP/IIP components.
Catalogue & Reference Numbers
Other Comments
Classification(s) used
Glossary of Terms
| Term | Description |
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Nominee
Resident | Nominee companies are specialists in the transfer and registration of securities. They hold securities on behalf of various resident and non-resident clients.
A resident is any individual or enterprise ordinarily domiciled in New Zealand. New Zealand registered branches and subsidiaries (of foreign enterprises) operating in NZ are regarded as NZ residents. |
Non-resident
Country of non-resident | A non-resident is any individual or enterprise ordinarily domiciled in a country other than NZ. Foreign subsidiaries and foreign branches of NZ enterprises are regarded as non-residents.
Country of non-resident refers to the country in which the non-resident beneficial owner resides. However, this is not always known - in such cases respondents are asked to record the country of domicile of the non-resident investor that they immediately deal with i.e. the `first leg' of the investment. |
| Equity Securities | Equity securities cover all instruments and records acknowledging, after the claims of all creditors have been met, claims to the residual value of the enterprise.
Examples:
- company shares
- stocks
- participating preference shares
- shares/units in mutual funds, investment trusts, and unit trusts
- equity trusts
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| Cash and Deposits | Cash consists of notes and coin that are in circulation. Deposits comprise both transferable and other deposits. Transferable deposits consist of deposits that are exchangeable on demand at par without restriction. In the Quarterly Nominees Survey the nominees are reporting on cash accounts plus other deposits that they hold for non-resident clients to facilitate their trading in securities. |
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| Market Value of Equity Held | The value in current rather than historic cost terms, of the stock of NZ equity that is held for non-residents via NZ nominees. It is a liability for NZ and is recorded in the BOP and IIP under: Liabilities: Portfolio Investment: Equity Securities. |
| Dividends/Distributions | Dividends are the distribution of earnings allocated to shares and other forms of participation in the equity of incorporated private enterprises, co-operatives and public corporations. Distributions refers to income received from unit trusts or mutual funds. |
Contact Details
Liability
Statistics New Zealand gives no warranty that the information or data supplied contains no errors. However, all care and diligence has been used in processing, analysing and extracting the information. Statistics New Zealand shall not be liable for any loss or damage suffered by the customer consequent upon the use directly, or indirectly, of the information supplied in this product.