INTRODUCTION
Countries all over the world collect and compile measures of economic activity and produce statistics about their national economy. These are known as national accounts. National accounts provide Industry statistics, such as the total value of Output and Value Added, both at the total economy level as well as by Industry. Yet, the value of inputs and outputs can be described using more than one set of prices and countries use different valuation conventions in their national accounts. The value of goods and services can be measured using three different types of valuation: purchaser prices, producer prices, and basic prices. These concepts differ in their treatment of taxes, subsidies, wholesale and retail trade margins, and transportation costs. This article defines and describes the three concepts of valuation, highlights differences in valuation between the international standard, U.S., and Canada, and discusses the implications within IMPLAN.
PURCHASER, PRODUCER, AND BASIC PRICES
Perhaps the easiest valuation to understand is purchaser prices because these are the prices that we see in our day-to-day lives. Purchaser prices reflect the total amount paid by the purchaser in order to take delivery of a unit of a good or service. It includes transport costs, wholesale and retail trade margins, and taxes (unless the taxes are deductible by the purchaser). Purchaser prices reflect the effective actual price paid by a purchaser for a good or service, whether it be an Industry purchasing goods and services as Intermediate Inputs or Institutions purchasing goods and services for final consumption. Industry production can be valued in either producer prices or basic prices, with the primary differences being how taxes, transport costs, and wholesale and retail trade margins are treated.
Producer prices reflect the total amount received by the producer from the purchaser as a result of the sale of a unit of a good or service. This can be thought of as the prices of goods and services “at the factory gate.” This valuation does not include wholesale and retail margins and transportation costs, but it does include sales taxes and excise taxes collected and remitted by producers. Producer prices do not include government subsidies received by the producers in the valuation of Output. In other words, it is the price that the producer invoices to the purchaser.
Basic prices reflect the total amount retained by the producer as a result of the sale. It is the price that is considered most relevant to the producers’ decision-making process. It is the price of the good or service before any taxes have been added, is inclusive of any subsidies, and excludes any transportation charges or other margins that have been invoiced separately by the producer.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE THREE TYPES OF PRICES
The figure below summarizes the essential differences between basic prices, producer prices, and purchaser prices. From the production perspective, Output can be measured in producer prices or basic prices. The treatment of taxes and subsidies serves as one of the primary distinctions between basic prices and producer prices. When Output is measured at basic prices, any tax on the product directly payable on the Output is treated as if it were paid directly by the purchaser to the government instead of a component of the price paid to the producer (who would have remitted to the government). Subsidies are treated in the same manner, such that any subsidy on the product is treated as if it were received directly by the purchaser and not the producer. The rationale for this is that the producer receives subsidies from the government as a mechanism to lower the prices charged to purchasers. In this way, the basic price valuation measures the amount actually retained by the producer.
Figure 1. Relationship between Basic, Producer, and Purchaser Prices
As treatment of taxes and subsidies are one of the primary distinctions between producer prices and basic prices, additional discussion is warranted. Basic price valuation distinguishes taxes that are incurred in relation to production and sales (Taxes on Products and Imports or TOPI) and taxes that are incurred that are not directly linked to production or sales (other taxes on production). At IMPLAN, we call these Taxes on Products and Imports Net of Subsidies (TOPS) and Other Taxes on Production Net of Subsidies (OTXS), respectively. When no distinction is made between these two types of taxes, this is called Taxes on Production and Imports Net of Subsidies (TOPI).
Taxes on Products and Imports Net of Subsidies (TOPS) + Other Taxes on Production Net of Subsidies (OTXS) = Taxes on Production and Imports Net of Subsidies (TOPI)
Taxes on Products and Imports Net of Subsidies (TOPS) reflect taxes that are paid to the government by the producer when a good or service is sold. This typically includes sales taxes, excise taxes on fuel, alcohol, tobacco, and utilities, and import duties, among others. Taxes on products are taxes that are payable per unit of output. In other words, if no products are sold in a given timeframe, for example due to a plant closure, no taxes accrue.
In an Input-Output Table, TOPS are accounted for when an Industry purchases goods and services as Intermediate Inputs or when an Institution purchases goods and services for final consumption. So when the Agricultural Industry purchases fertilizer from the Fertilizer Industry it pays the sales taxes associated with that purchase not to the Fertilizer Industry, but to a separate TOPS row. In other words, the taxes are payable per unit of output. An Industry’s TOPS value represents the total TOPS paid that is associated with the Industry’s purchase of Intermediate Inputs. Thus, TOPS is payable out of the Industry’s Intermediate Inputs.
This contrasts with Other Taxes on Production Net of Subsidies (OTXS), which are taxes that are collected from producers that are not directly linked to product sales. These types of taxes generally include land or property taxes, government licensing fees, and taxes on assets or labor employed. Since these taxes are not payable per unit of output, they cannot be deducted from the producer price and therefore are recorded as payable out of the producer’s Value Added.
Subsidies, or monetary grants paid by government agencies to private business and government enterprises, are included in Output valued at basic prices. The intent is to capture the total amount ultimately received and retained by the producer in exchange for the product. Subsidies are generally assumed to be directly associated with a unit of output, though technically there is a distinction between subsidies on products and other subsidies on production. Some countries report this distinction within their national accounts while others consider this as an area of future research.
These differences in valuation make a difference when making comparisons across countries using the national accounts. Generally, an Industry in a country that measures Output using producer prices (and without heavy subsidization) will be higher than the Output of the same Industry in a country that measures Output at basic prices, and it is higher by the amount of Taxes on Production and Imports Net of Subsidies (TOPI). When in producer prices, the TOPI of a given Industry includes the taxes paid by all purchasers of that Industry’s products whereas, in basic prices, the TOPS of a given Industry includes only taxes paid by that Industry associated with its purchase of Intermediate Inputs. This difference can be quite substantial because of the magnitude of TOPI.
More importantly, the difference in valuation poses challenges for comparing national statistics related to Value Added, one of the most important economic indicators for describing a national or regional economy. Like Output, a country that measures Value Added using producer prices will generally be higher than the Value Added of a country that measures Valued Added with basic prices, and it differs by the amount of TOPI. The differences also have a substantial impact on Industries in which TOPI is remitted under producer prices, such as wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels. However, this may not be the case for Industries that are heavily subsidized.
Output and Value Added at producer prices is further complicated by value-added type taxes (VAT), which are taxes on products that are incurred and collected along every stage of production or sale. Many countries have enacted VAT or similar type tax structures. Under these systems, producers are typically not required to pay the full VAT that they have invoiced to their customers. This is because they can deduct the VAT that they paid on goods and services for Intermediate Inputs (II). In the absence of VAT, like in the U.S., the total value of II is the same whether they are valued at producer prices or purchaser prices. However, in the presence of VAT, the producer price excludes VAT and therefore does not reflect true market prices and excludes some, but not all, taxes on products. Basic prices are intended to be a clearer concept in that they do not include any taxes on the product (but they do include subsidies on the product).
Finally, purchaser prices can vary significantly from the effective price received by the producer. This is because there are generally additional costs along the value chain. Taxes at various stages along the value chain may raise the price (or lower the price if subsidized), wholesalers and retailers have added their margins, and transportation and storage costs may have been incurred.
VALUATION OF OUTPUT AND VALUE ADDED IN PRACTICE
As mentioned previously, countries around the world have used different valuation conventions for measuring Output and Value Added in their national accounts, depending in large part on the valuation used for statistical business surveys that collect this critical information. This makes international comparisons incredibly challenging. To address this, the 2008 System of National Accounts (SNA), the international standard for national accounting, recommends that Output be valued in basic prices. Efforts are currently underway to continue to develop internationally consistent national economic accounts. This section describes the international standard for valuation, according to the 2008 SNA, and the valuation practices in the U.S. and Canada, respectively.
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD
The international standard and preferred method of valuation of Output and gross Value Added, according to the 2008 SNA, utilizes basic prices. As described previously, Output at basic prices is the amount receivable by the producer for a unit of good or service produced minus any tax payable and plus any subsidy receivable as a consequence of its production or sale. Basic prices are especially preferred when a system of VAT, or similar deductible tax system, is in operation within the country. The SNA recognizes, however, that there may be circumstances when valuation at basic prices is not feasible and allows for use of producer prices in national accounts.
U.S. PRACTICE
The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) and other federal agencies, such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), are responsible for producing statistics for the U.S. national accounts. Historically, the BEA has valued both Output and Value Added in producer prices because this is the type of valuation that has been requested of producers in business surveys. In recent years, however, the BEA has made adjustments to convert the valuation from producer prices to basic prices. The BEA now presents Industry statistics in both producer prices and basic prices. In the basic prices presentation, there is no distinction between subsidies on products and other subsidies on production. This has been identified as an area for future research by the BEA. The U.S.-based IMPLAN products present the production of goods in producer prices.
CANADIAN PRACTICE
Statistics Canada is solely responsible for producing statistics for the Canadian national accounts. In Industry surveys conducted by Statistics Canada, businesses are instructed to value sales excluding any taxes payable on products and excluding any subsidy receivable on products. This treatment of subsidies is different from the international standard. However, because taxes payable on products have been excluded, the value of Output for most of the products are valued in basic prices. According to Statistics Canada, it is only different from SNA guidelines for the handful of products that receive subsidies. Yet, because this valuation deviates from the international standard, this valuation is called modified basic prices. Due to the relatively small subsidies on products in Canada, this has a negligible effect for most Industries. Exceptions include some food items produced by the agriculture Industry.
Importantly, the Canadian practice for measuring Value Added is consistent with the international conventions. In Canada, Value Added at basic prices is equal to Output (at modified basic prices) less Intermediate Inputs (at purchaser prices) plus any subsidies. Thus, rather than including subsidies on products in the value of Output at the outset, the value of subsidies is included after the initial calculation of Value Added. In other words, Value Added at basic prices in Canada is identical to the international standard, despite the differences in the valuation of Output. In the Canadian national accounts and input-output tables, there is a distinction between subsidies on products and subsidies on production.
IMPLICATIONS IN IMPLAN
IMPLAN has several different economic impact products available for different geographies. These include the U.S.-based IMPLAN products, the Canada Provincial product, and the International product. Each of these products have various levels of geographic detail, with the U.S.-based products available down to the zip code-level, the Canada Provincial product available at the province- or territory-level, and the International product available at the country-level (including the U.S. and Canada). The raw data sources (national accounts) used in the development of these products differ and, thus, data is not comparable across products.
One of the primary differences between the U.S.-based IMPLAN products and the Canada Provincial and International products is the valuation convention used. The U.S.-based IMPLAN products present the production of goods in producer prices while the Canada Provincial and International products present them in basic prices1. This results in Value Added in the Canada Provincial and International products not being comparable to the U.S-based products. More specifically, there is a slight variation in the way Value Added is calculated in the Canada Provincial and International Products from the way that Value Added is calculated in the U.S.-based IMPLAN products. This is based on the differences in the treatment of taxes. In the Canada Provincial and International Products, an Industry’s Value Added is derived as:
Value Added =
Employee Compensation (EC)
plus Proprietor Income (PI)
plus Other Property Income (OPI)
plus Other Taxes on Production (OTXS)
where OTXS reflects taxes that are not associated with a unit of output (for example, property taxes or business licenses). Note that the taxes on product net of subsidies (TOPS) is not part of Valued Added, but rather part of the Industry’s Intermediate Inputs. In IMPLAN, these are represented as a purchase of the TOPS “Industry” in the paying Industry’s production function. This Industry should not be used as it is considered for accounting purposes only.
Figure 2. IMPLAN’s Leontief Production Function for Canada Provincial Product
Figure 3. IMPLAN’s Leontief Production Function for International Product
In U.S.-based IMPLAN products,
Value Added =
Employee Compensation (EC)
plus Proprietor Income (PI)
plus Other Property Income (OPI)
plus Taxes on Production and Imports Net of Subsidies (TOPI)
where TOPI includes all taxes or subsidies on production. As such, this valuation usually produces higher Value Added by Industry than one at basic prices, though this could depend on the magnitude of subsidies. The magnitude of difference is the taxes on product net of subsidies (TOPS) and the values related to TOPS are reflected in Industries that are engaged in wholesale and retail trade. Thus, the Value Added for these wholesale and retail trade Industries is much higher than its valuation at basic prices. On the other hand, Valued Added for highly subsidized Industries (such as agriculture) is lower than the one calculated at basic prices.
Figure 4. IMPLAN’s Leontief Production Function for U.S.-based Products
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1Output by Industry in the Canada Provincial product are technically in modified basic prices, rather than basic prices. However, Value Added by Industry adheres to basic price valuation as discussed above.