Seminar on: Progress in International Trade Statistics     towards an integrated approach of international trade and other economic statistics 23 February 2011, 8:00 - 9:30 am Venue: Conference Room 5 (TNLB) United Nations, New York

Policy makers have raised questions about the actual size of world trade, about the meaning of country of origin and therefore the meaning of trade imbalances in a world where production is spread over many countries. Further, concerns were raised by the effect of economic downturn in one part of the world causing loss of employment in the export industries of many developing countries in other parts of the world. A better understanding, interpretation and use of international trade statistics can be obtained by better understanding the relation between trade and global production processes.

This was the starting point of the Global Forum on Trade Statistics “Measuring Global Trade: Do We Have the Right Numbers?” which took place from 2 to 4 February 2011 in Geneva, Switzerland. The seminar will report on the presentations, findings and conclusions of the Forum. Time permitting the seminar also intends to report on the ongoing work of developing compilation guidelines for both the “International Merchandise Trade Statistics: Concepts and Definitions 2010 (IMTS 2010) and “Manual on Statistics of International Trade in Services 2010 (MSITS 2010)”.