1291.0 - A Guide to Major ABS Classifications, 1998  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 03/09/1998   
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Contents >> INSTITUTIONAL SECTOR: Standard Economic Sector Classifications of Australia (SESCA) >> Component classifications >> Standard Institutional Sector Classification of Australia (SISCA)

A review of SISCA was recently completed and involved both user feedback on the 1987 SISCA, and incorporated the relevant recommendations from the 1993 System of National Accounts (SNA93), and the fifth edition of the Balance of Payments Manual (BPM5).

Accordingly, SISCA has undergone significant changes from the 1987 SISCA. These changes include: the addition of a separate sector for Non-Profit Institutions Serving Households (NPISH); changes in terminology; changes in particular treatments; and the expansion of a number of categories in the financial subsections of the previous SISCA. New classifications have been introduced to enable accurate identification of the public/private components of the corporate sector and the level of government.

Purpose of the classification

The main purpose of SISCA is to classify transactors of the national income and outlay account and the national capital account into sectors, according to differences in their financial role and behaviour. This is done to facilitate the provision and analysis of sectoral statistics on the sources and uses of disposable incomes and capital funds.

Units of the SISCA

SISCA is a classification of institutional units which are the owning and decision-making entities. An institutional unit is an economic entity that is capable, in its own right, of owning assets, incurring liabilities and engaging in economic activities and in transactions with other entities. There are two main types of institutional units - households and legal or social entities, of which there are three types, corporations, government units and non-profit institutions. SISCA applies to resident units ie. institutional units which have a centre of economic interest in the economic territory of a country.

Structure of the classification


1.Non-Financial Corporations
2.Financial Corporations
2.1Central bank and other supervisory authorities
2.1.1 Reserve Bank of Australia
2.1.2 Other supervisory authorities
2.2Depository Corporations
2.2.1 Banks
2.2.2 Other depository corporations
2.3Insurance corporations and pension funds
2.3.1 Life insurance
2.3.2 Pension funds
2.3.3 Other insurance corporations
2.4Other Financial Institutions
2.4.1 Central banking authorities
2.4.2 Financial intermediaries nec.
2.4.3 Financial auxiliaries
3General Government
4Households
5Non-Profit Institutions Serving Households
6Rest of the World

There is a direct relationship between institutional units and institutional sectors. The four types of resident institutional units are grouped into the five institutional sectors. Note that corporations and NPIs may be classified to more than one sector.






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