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Information about the Wholesale Trade Survey |
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Availability
| Valid From: .. | 12/01/2002 |
| To: .. | Ongoing |
| Frequency: .. | Quarterly |
Design
Purpose: 1. To provide an economic indicator of how the Wholesale sector is performing.
2. To provide the data necessary for the compilation of the Wholesale
industry's contribution to the quarterly national accounts.
General Information ..
Target Population
All enterprises that operate in New Zealand classified to ANZSIC Division F (Wholesale).
Population covered
All economically significant kind-of-activity units (KAU's) on the SNZ Business Frame (BF) that have an ancillary classification of ANZSIC Division F (Wholesale).
This Division includes all units mainly engaged in wholesale trade. The term ‘wholesale trade’ is used here in the broad sense to include the resale (as agents or principals) of new or used goods to businesses or to institutional (including Government) users.
Businesses mainly engaged in wholesale trade are wholesale merchants who take title to the goods they sell; separate sales branches (not being retail stores) operated by manufacturing enterprises; commission agents, import and export agents; petroleum products distributors; and co-operatives and marketing boards engaged in marketing farm based products.
Units mainly engaged in reselling their own goods by auction are included in this Division, but units which are mainly engaged in providing auctioning services for others are included in Division L Property and Business Services.
Units mainly engaged in selling their goods to non-end users are included in this Division, but units which are mainly engaged in selling their goods to end users are included in Division G Retail Trade. An example: a unit selling a motorcycle to a farmer for use on the farm is classified as Wholesaling since it is a sale to a business and the product is used in the farm production process.
In the case of units which have goods manufactured for them on commission or contract a variety of situations are encountered with different treatments applicable to each. However, in general, if a unit has no goods producing facilities itself then all its sales of goods produced for it on commission are treated for classification purposes as wholesale or retail sales, as appropriate.
Statistical Unit
Kind-of-activity unit (KAU)
Statistical Units and the Business Frame
The statistical units on the BF are Enterprises, kind of activity units (KAUs) and geographic units (GEOs).
Selection Unit
Enterprise
Enterprises on the BF considered for selection are those that have one or more wholesaling KAUs. Enterprises with more than one KAU (where at least one KAU is in wholesaling) are automatically selected.
Collection Unit
Kind-of-activity unit
Under Coverage
There are 3 main types of undercoverage
1. Wholesaling activity at a level beneath the selection unit - KAUs on the BF are derived units composed of one or more geographic units. A geographic unit is a separate operating unit engaged in New Zealand in one, or predominately one, kind of economic activity from a single physical location or base. Some KAUs will have geographic units which are classified to wholesaling on the BF but because this is not the predominant activity of the KAU the KAU will have a different classification, for example, manufacturing. These KAUs are not eligible to be included in the Wholesale Trade Survey. Note that wholesaling KAUs that contain non-wholesaling GEOs have all their activity included in WTS. Therefore, as in this collections case, there can be some overcoverage too.
2. Activity from units which are excluded from selection ie not economically significant.
3. Activity from units who are not on the BF (eg those not GST registered with IRD), and very new registrations that have not been processed.
Population and Sample Size
Postal sample approximately 1,300 kind-of-activity units.
Administrative (tax) stratum approximately 15,000 kind-of-activity units.
Population approximately 18,000 kind-of-activity units.
Seasonal Adjustment
The seasonally adjusted series removes the effect of regular climatic or calendar events. This allows direct comparison between figures from different periods. The X12-ARIMA package is used to produce seasonally adjusted figures and trend estimates. All seasonally adjusted figures are subject to revision each quarter.
Trend Estimates
A trend estimate is one in which both the seasonal and irregular components have been removed. Once confirmed, trend estimates reveal the underlying direction of movements in a series. Trend estimates indicate turning points more accurately than seasonally adjusted estimates. The wholesaling sales trend series is also calculated using the X12-ARIMA seasonal adjustment package. It is based on optimal weighted moving averages of the seasonally adjusted series with an adjustment for outlying values. Trend estimates towards the end of the series incorporate new data as it becomes available and can therefore change as more observations are added to the series. Revisions can be particularly large if an observation is treated as an outlier in one period, but is found to be part of the underlying trend as further observations are added to the series. All trend estimates are subject to revision each month but normally only the last two or three estimates are likely to be substantially altered.
EA/WQ/01
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.
Note: All variables are produced for ANZSIC publication industries.
| Variable Name | Description |
| Sales | Derived variable. The value of sales of goods and services for the quarter. Sales are released by storetype. The sales value for each storetype is calculated by summing all the weighted sales values for each unit in the storetype. The weighted value for each unit is calculated by multiplying the sales value for each unit (the variable "value" on the unit record dataset where linecode has a code of 0100) by the variable "weight" on the unit record dataset. Sales are collected as operating income (Income from total sales). This includes:
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| Raw Materials Stocks | Derived variable. Stocks of raw materials, fuels, etc. Stocks are released by storetype. The stocks value for each storetype is calculated by summing all the weighted stocks values for each unit in the storetype. The weighted value for each unit is calculated by multiplying the stocks value for each unit by the weight variable Raw Materials Stocks are exclusive of GST. |
| Finished Goods and Work in Progress Materials Stocks Storetype | Derived variable. Trading stocks, finished goods and work in progress. Stocks are released by storetype. The stocks value for each storetype is calculated by summing all the weighted stocks values for each unit in the storetype. The weighted value for each unit is calculated by multiplying the stocks value for each unit weight by the variable. trading, finished goods, and work in progress stocks are exclusive of GST. Classification variable Data are released for the following 16 storetypes as well as total sales and stocks.
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Changes in Output Variables over time
Guide to Interpreting Data
Summary of Changes to Survey/Output ..History of the Wholesale Trade Survey from June 1963 to September 2002
The Wholesale Trade survey has been running in one form or another since June 1963. Beginning in June 1963 as Wholesale Trade (WHO) it included totals for both sales and stocks and also storetype information. Eleven storetypes were used: Food and Drink, Apparel, Furniture, Automotive, Hardware, Chemicals, General Merchants, Machinery, Electrical Supplies, Paper and Stationery, Miscellaneous.
This survey ran until December 1977, being revised in March 1977. The revised series was known also as Wholesale Trade, however the storetype information was not directly comparable to the old survey. This revised survey ran until June 1984.
In June 1984 Wholesale trade was covered in the Economic Survey of Distribution (WHL). This survey covered total stocks and sales but provided no storetype information.
The Quarterly Wholesale Trade Survey was introduced in September 1989. The sample size was increased to improve the accuracy and stability of the estimates compared to the Quarterly Economic Survey of Distribution. Data were published for total sales and stocks.
The Wholesale Trade Survey was redesigned for the March 1995 quarter. This redesign introduced ANZSIC
as the industrial classification, as well as changing the collection unit from GEO to KAU.
In the March 1997 quarter the back ANZSIC and forward NZSIC series were revised. The back ANZSIC series had not been revised since the June 1995 quarter following the redesign. For more details on the revision and explanations for the cause see the March 1997 quarter occurrence and analysis reports.
In March 1998 Seasonally adjusted estimates were run for the first time. Seasonally adjusted data was made available back to March 1995 (the beginning of the storetypes series). Because the adjustment is indirect, seasonally adjusted (and trend) estimates are not available for the total prior to March 1995.
2002 Redesign -
The previous WTS series was based on a statistical sample that was first surveyed in the March 1995 quarter. The last quarter of the old WTS was September 2002. The WTS was a panel survey. Businesses had one chance of selection at their birth and those that were introduced then remained in the sample until either they ceased operation in the wholesale industry, or the panel was reselected.
Over time, sample designs become less effective in representing the current population as a whole. While the original samples are maintained to include a representative selection of new businesses, periodically panel samples need to be refreshed to reflect changes in the composition of the population.
The WTS has been redesigned to provide better and more up-to-date coverage of the Wholesale population. The new WTS design will allow changes in the composition of the population over time to be better represented in the survey.
Changes to the WTS include:
- a redesign of the survey questionnaire;
- the inclusion of royalty and patent fees within the definition of operating income;
- the use of administrative (tax) data for small to medium-sized businesses in place of direct surveying;
- the adoption of periodic re-selection of the survey sample population.
- the use of bi-variate stratification in the sample design;
- improvements in non-response imputation methodologies.
These changes have been made to ensure that the future estimates produced from the WTS more accurately reflect activity in the wholesale sector of the New Zealand economy.
During the September 2002 quarter, the WTS was calculated on both the old and new basis. The primary purpose of this "dual run" was to enable the comparison of the surveys run under the previous and redesigned methods, so that the two series could be linked at a single point in time. This facilitated the production of an analytical back series for the redefined output industries. Another important function of the dual run was to measure level shifts in the results coming from the two different designs so that the results can be verified and explained.
The content of the questionnaire was reviewed with a focus on meeting the core data requirements of users, while being mindful of the burden that such collection places on respondents.
Usage and Limitations of the Data ..The objective of the Wholesale Trade Quarterly (WTS) survey is to provide timely, short term, key indicator statistics on the wholesaling sector of the economy. This provides a useful short term indicator for economic analysts and policy makers.
The data is also used in the compilation of quarterly and annual National Accounts.
Sales to stocks ratios may also provide useful comparative data for commercial users.
It should always be borne in mind that the data is taken from a sample survey and is therefore subject to sample error. On some occasions there are requests for data below the published, storetype design level which provides more detail. These data will be subject to higher sample errors than published statistics.
Related Data Sources ..
The Annual Enterprise Survey
The WTS covers a subset of the Annual Enterprise Survey (AES) which surveys income, expenditure and balance sheet data for most industries in the economy. AES provides much more detail than the WTS, but because of the nature of the survey, is much less timely with provisional results scheduled to be released in the October of the year following the end of the reference period. For more information refer to the profile on the Annual Enterprise Survey.
The Retail Trade Survey
The survey population consists of those businesses that are classified to the retail sector in Statistics New Zealand's business directory. This includes GEOs that predominantly sell to private individuals or households. Sales reported will cover more than just sales to New Zealand householders. They include retail sales to overseas tourists or to other businesses.
For more information refer to the profile for the Retail Trade Survey.
The Retail Trade Survey, however, is GEO based. Because of this, estimates from the Wholesale Trade Survey are not strictly compatible with those from the Retail Trade Survey.
Sampling Errors ..The 2002 redesign aims to achieve relative sampling errors of:
i) 5% for sales and total stocks at the total wholesale level.
ii) 10% for sales and total stocks at the published industry level.
Non-sampling errors Non-sampling errors in the survey data may result from errors in the sample frame, respondent error, mistakes made during processing survey results and non-response imputation. Statistics New Zealand adopts procedures to detect and minimise these types of errors but they may still occur and they are not quantifiable.
Data for the Wholesale Trade Survey is subject to revision if significant errors are detected in subsequent quarters.
Caveats on Release ..Data below design level
Data may be released below the design level, i.e. below storetype level, but each value released must be made up of at least 30 observations. This ruling is concerned with data quality and is not related to confidentiality considerations.
This caveat is to be attached to any release of Wholesale Trade Survey data below design level, i.e. below storetype.
- These statistics are released with a caveat because of limitations in the data, they are of a lower standard than official statistics Statistics New Zealand releases. This is because the Wholesale Trade Survey sample is selected and weighted at the storetype level and the release of this data is below that design level. This data is indicative only, and may be subject to revisions in the future.
Data are often requested at a regional level. As data for the Wholesale Trade Survey are collected for accounting units and these may cover industrial activities in more than one location, regional estimates are not available for this survey. The value of regional data is also limited by the nature of the industry as many wholesalers operate from one location but purchase and/or sell products on a national basis.
Catalogue & Reference Numbers
| INFOS: | ANZSIC Series WTSQ.SNF0***A - Actual sales WTSQ.SNF0***D - Actual raw materials stocks WTSQ.SNF0***E - Actual finished goods stcoks WTSQ.SNF0***AS - Seasonally adjusted sales WTSQ.SNF0***AT - Sales trend WTSQ.SNF0***DS - Seasonally adjusted raw materials stocks WTSQ.SNF0***DT - Raw materials stock trend WTSQ.SNF0***ES - Seasonally adjusted finished goods stocks WTSQ.SNF0***ET - Finished goods stock trend where 'F0***' equals: F0111 Unprocessed primary products wholesaling F0121 Petroleum product wholesaling F0122 Metal and mineral wholesaling F0123 Chemical wholesaling F0131 Builders supplies wholesaling F0141 Farm, construction, professional & business equipment wholesaling F0142 Electrical and electronic equipment wholesaling nec. F0143 Machinery and equipment wholesaling nec F0151 Motor vehicle wholesaling F0164 Primary product food wholesaling F0165 Food and Grocery Products wholesaling F0171 Textile, clothing & footwear wholesaling F0172 Household good wholesaling F0173 Wholesale trade nec F0174 Books and paper product wholesaling F0175 Pharmaceutical and toiletry wholesaling F0ZZZ Total Wholesale trade |
Other Comments
Classifications | Classification Versions | Classification Type |
ANZSIC96 - Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification - NZ Version 1996 | V4.1 | NZ Standard |
Glossary of Terms
| Customer Service E-mail Contact: | info@stats.govt.nz |
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| Survey Enquiries E-mail Contact: | kathy.hicks@stats.govt.nz |
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.