IMF’s Annual Observance Report of ‘Special Data Dissemination Standard’ 29/08/2019 – Posted in: Daily News – Tags:

SPECIAL DATA DISSEMINATION STANDARD

 

For: Preliminary & Mains

Topics covered:

  • Major findings of IMF’s “Annual Observance Report of the Special Data Dissemination Standard for 2018”.
  • What is the Special Data Dissemination Standard?
  • Its importance, benefits, significances

 

News Flash

According to the IMF’s “Annual Observance Report of the Special Data Dissemination Standard for 2018”:

  1. In 2018, India failed to comply with multiple requirements prescribed in the Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS) mandatory for all IMF members.
  2. Other economies comprising the BRICS grouping of Brazil, China, South Africa and Russia, have maintained a nearly impeccable record.

 

Highlights

  • Brazil did not delay dissemination in any category.
  • China, South Africa and Russia lagged in some categories but the delay did not exceed a month (31 days) for any category.
  • In India’s case, the delay has exceeded 100 days in multiple instances.
  • An “X” entry reflects “data not being disseminated”. In 2018, in at least nine data categories, India has not disseminated data.
  • An “O” entry corresponds to “no mention in ARC”. In at least three data categories, India has not mentioned a prescribed entry in its advanced data release calendar.

 

India: Reason for delay in compliance with IMF standards

  • India’s deviations are a “result of inadequate care paid to (data) dissemination related issues which leads to a lack of openness and transparency.
  • The delays in data dissemination from various government agencies — the most recent data from the National Crime Records Bureau dates back to 2016 and accident statistics have not been updated since 2015 shows that inconsistencies have crept into the dissemination of fiscal datasets.
  • In 2018, in eight data categories, India delayed dissemination by varying degrees. For instance, in quarter 1, the “national accounts” data dissemination occurred almost two months (118 days) later than prescribed.

 

Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS)

  • The SDDS is a global benchmark for disseminating macroeconomic statistics to the public.
  • Data dissemination standards enhance the availability of timely and comprehensive statistics, which contributes to sound macroeconomic policies and the efficient functioning of financial markets.
  • SDDS subscription indicates that a country meets the test of “good statistical citizenship”.
  • Countries that subscribe to the SDDS agree to follow good practices in four areas: the coverage, periodicity, and timeliness of data; public access to those data; data integrity; and data quality.

 

Background

  • The IMF launched the SDDS initiative in 1996 to guide members to enhance data transparency and help financial market participants with adequate information to assess the economic situations of individual countries.
  • India subscribed to the Special Data Dissemination Standard on December 27, 1996.

 

Importance of Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS)

  • The yearly observance report for each member country lists the compliances and deviations from the SDDS under each data category for that year.
  • There are over 20 data categories that IMF considers for this report to capture a nation’s economic health including national accounts (GDP, GNI), production indices, employment, and central government operations.

 

Types of deviations from SDDS

The report lists three types of deviations from SDDS.

  1. The first deals with delays in data dissemination from the periodicity prescribed in the SDDS.
  2. Second occurs when member countries do not list a data category in their Advance Release Calendars (ARC) despite the category being mandated by the SDDS.
  3. The third deviation occurs when data is not disseminated at all for a particular period.

 

What is the IMF standard for data dissemination?

  • The IMF has taken steps to enhance member country transparency and openness, including setting voluntary standards for the dissemination of economic and financial data.
  • The purpose of the SDDS is to guide member countries in the dissemination of comprehensive, timely, accessible, and reliable economic and financial statistical data in the context of increasing economic and financial integration.
  • The IMF has established the SDDS as an initiative that serves the Fund’s members who decide to voluntarily subscribe to the SDDS.

 

International Monetary Fund

The IMF is an organization of 189 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.

Created in 1945, the IMF is governed by and accountable to the 189 countries that make up its near-global membership

 

 

Source: The Hindu

 

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