UN, APEC, Asean To Collaborate On Harmonizing Trade

Jakarta, Oct 10 (Antara) - The United Nations Statistics Division, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Secretariat jointly organized "International Seminar on Trade and Tourism Statistics" here on October 7-10, to discuss efforts to harmonize regional statistics on trade and tourism. Hosted by Indonesia`s Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS), the seminar was held with the assistance of the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement - Economic Cooperation Work Programme (AANZFTA-ECWP) and APEC-Technical Assistance and Training Facility, which is funded by the U.S Agency for International Development, Jakarta-based ASEAN Secretariat said on its official website. The services sector has grown as such that adequate measurement of Statistics of International Trade in Services (SITS) has become a major concern. More detailed, more comparable and more comprehensive SITS are needed to measure the impact of trade in services on the economy and to provide useful information to facilitate international negotiations and to design policy tools. The internationally agreed framework addressing these data requirements is outlined in the Manual on Statistics of International Trade in Service 2010 (MSITS 2010). The seminar referred to MSITS 2010 on selected service categories such as transportation, other business, computer, and manufacturing, with emphasis on travel and tourism statis0tics. It also discussed policy-relevant Foreign Affiliates of Trade Statistics, modes of supply, guidelines for statistical business registers, and measurement of Global Value Chains. As these statistics are not collected and compiled by a single national agency but through collaborative effort of the national statistical office, the central bank and other line ministries, notably the ministries of foreign trade and tourism, strong cooperation at the national level is crucial. The four-day seminar is also seen as a constructive building block of the Asian-Pacific implementation plan for economic statistics within the framework of the System of National Accounts. The integrated economic statistics are important for national planning and policy, but are also relevant in the effort to harmonize regional and international economic statistics to advance the works of ASEAN, APEC and other such organizational efforts in the pursuit of regional economic growth and prosperity. This seminar is a follow-up activity to statistical capacity building initiatives undertaken by the AANZFTA-ECWP and APEC, the ASEAN Secretariat said in the statement.