Australian National Accounts: Input-Output Tables (Product Details) methodology

This table shows the Input-Output Product classification (IOPC) detail of key data items. The key data items are further disaggregated on the following tables.

This table shows Australian production at basic prices by Input–Output Product Classification (IOPC) and by Input–Output Industry Group (IOIG). A row in this table represents a product group and a column represents an industry group.

This table shows the margins associated with the supply of domestic and imported products broken down by Input–Output Product Classification (IOPC). These are further disaggregated by Input–Output Industry Group (IOIG) in T4-T17.

This table shows taxes and subsidies on products broken down by Input–Output Product Classification (IOPC). These are further disaggregated by Input–Output Industry Group (IOIG) T19-T23.

This table shows total supply at purchasers’ prices broken down by Input–Output Product Classification (IOPC). These are further disaggregated in T2, T3 & T18

This table shows intermediate use at basic prices by Input–Output Product Classification (IOPC) and the components of final demand by Input–Output Industry Group (IOIG). A row in this table represents a product group and a column represents an industry group. 

This table shows intermediate use at purchasers' prices by Input–Output Product Classification (IOPC) and the components of final demand by Input–Output Industry Group (IOIG). A row in this table represents a product group and a column represents an industry group.

The IOIG(2015) to ANZSIC06 table shows the concordance (mapping) between Input Output Industry Groups (IOIG) and Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC06).

The IOIG(2005) to IOIG(2009) and IOPC(2005) to IOPC(2009) tables also show the concordance between the 2005 and 2009 IOIG's and the 2005 and 2009 Input-Output Product Classifications (IOPC). IOIG(2005) and IOPC(2005) are based on ANZSIC(93) and IOIG(2009) and IOPC(2009) are based on ANZSIC(06).

The IOPC(2015) to IOPC(2017) table shows the concordance between the 2015 to 2017 Input-Output Product Classifications (IOPC).

The IOPC(2017) to IOPC(2018) table shows the concordance between the 2017 to 2018 Input-Output Product Classifications (IOPC).

The IOPC(2018) to CPI(17th series) table shows the concordance between IOPC(2018) and CPI(17th series) codes. In the I-O tables this shows the concordance for Household Final Consumption Expenditure (HFCE) data to the CPI codes.

The IOPG(2015) to HEC(2015-16) table shows the concordance between the Input-Output Product Group (IOPG)(2015) and Household Expenditure Classification (HEC)(2015-16) codes.

In the IOIG(2015) to ANZSIC06 table, IOIG(2015) codes are shown in column A and IOIG(2015) descriptors are shown in column B of the table. ANZSIC codes are shown in column C and ANZSIC descriptors are shown in column D. The ANZSIC codes shown in this table are ANZSIC Class codes.

For example, IOIG 0101, the Sheep, grains, beef and dairy cattle industry is mapped to ANZSIC codes 0141 (Sheep Farming (Specialised)), 0142 (Beef Cattle Farming (Specialised)), 0143 (Beef Cattle feedlots (specialised)), 0144 (Sheep–Beef Cattle Farming), 0145 (Grain–Sheep or Grain–Beef Farming), 0146 (Rice Growing), 0149 (Other Grain Growing) and 0160 (Dairy Cattle Farming).

The IOPC(2005) to IOPC(2009) table shows the 2005 IOPC code in column A with the 2005 IOPC descriptor shown in column B. Column C shows the 2009 IOPC code with the 2009 IOPC descriptor in column E. Column E indicates whether a 2005 IOPC is mapped partially to a 2009 IOPC and is indicated by a 'p' in the column.

For example, the 2005 IOPC 01110010 (Plant nurseries (incl turf)) is mapped partially to the 2009 IOPCs 01110010 (Plants grown undercover), 01120010 (Plants grown outdoors) and 01130010 (Turf).

The IOPC(2015) to IOPC(2017) table shows the 2015 IOPC code in column A with the 2015 IOPC descriptor shown in column B. Column C shows the 2017 IOPC code with the 2017 IOPC descriptor in column D.

The IOPC(2018) to CPI(17th series) table shows the 2018 IOPC code in column A with the 2018 IOPC descriptor shown in column C. Column D shows the CPI 17th series code with the CPI 17th series descriptor in column F. Column G indicates whether a 2018 IOPC is mapped partially to a CPI 17th series code and is indicated by a 'p' in the column.

For example, the 2018 IOPC 01110010 (Plants grown undercover) is mapped uniquely to the CPI 17th series code 543 (Other non-durable household products).

The IOPG(2015) to HEC(2015-16) table shows the 2015 IOPG code in column A with the 2015 IOPG descriptor shown in column C. Column D shows the partial split of corresponding 2015-16 HEC codes within a 2015 IOPG code. Where it shows a 'p', the 2015-16 HEC code is split between different 2015 IOPG codes. Column E shows the HEC(2015-16) code with the HEC(2015-16) descriptor in column G.

For example, 2015-16 HEC 1001060101 (Crash repairs) and 1001060201 (Vehicle servicing (including parts and labour)) are proportionally split within 2015 IOPG 9401 Automotive repair and maintenance. Where it shows a 'p' in Column D, the 2015-16 HEC code 0302030104 (Other lamb and mutton nec) is split between 2015 IOPG 0101 (Sheep, grains, beef and dairy cattle) and 2015 IOPG (1101 Meat and meat product manufacturing).

There are a number of factors to take into account when using this table. It should only be applied to data at Purchasers prices as it was based on the Household Expenditure Survey (HES) which is collected at Purchasers Prices. The table was compiled from the 2015-16 HES and may not align well to data in earlier years due to the changing nature of Household expenditure and the economic conditions prevailing at the time.

Where individual Household expenditure items do not correlate to one Input-Output product group, weights have been calculated using the best data available. Correspondences for some IOPGs have not been included due to confidentiality issues.

Data from the HES, classified by the HEC does not correlate directly to HFCE data as published in the National Accounts due to the following reasons:

• The scope of the HES excludes residents of remote areas, and those living in non-private dwellings (hotels, boarding houses and institutions);
• HFCE data includes expenditure by Non-Profit Institutions Serving Households units that are not included in HES;
• HFCE uses additional data sources including the Retail and Wholesale industry surveys;
• HES data is not used to compile HFCE data for Gambling as it collects data on a different basis;
• HES data is not used to compile Financial and insurance services as HES measures the total cost paid for insurance, and HFCE only captures the Insurance services charge;
• HES data is not used to compile the Actual rent paid on dwellings, and HFCE also includes an imputed value for rent for owner- occupied dwellings;
• HES estimates for Health include only out of pocket expenses, and do not include nursing home fees;
• For Education services, HES excludes expenditure on the Higher education loan program;
• HFCE estimates for repairs and maintenance are included in the Intermediate Usage of the Ownership of Dwellings industry and could not be concorded to HES data; and

HFCE estimates include an imputed value for the Financial Intermediation Services Indirectly Measured which is Measured differently in HES.

The IOPC(2018) table shows the 2018 IOPC code in column A with the 2018 IOPC descriptor shown in column C. Column D shows the corresponding IOPG(2015) code.

The IOIG(2015) table shows the 2015 IOIG code in column A with the 2015 IOIG descriptor shown in column B. Column C shows the corresponding ANZSIC Group code.

Australian production refers to the value at basic prices of goods and services produced in Australia.

The basic price is the amount receivable by the producer from the purchaser for a unit of a good or service produced as output minus any tax payable, and plus any subsidy receivable, on that unit as a consequence of its production or sale. It excludes any transport charges invoiced separately by the producer. Output sold at prices that are not economically significant (see also Economically significant prices) is not valued at these prices. Rather, such output is valued at its cost of production.

Changes in inventories represent the difference in value between inventories held at the beginning and end of the reference period by enterprises and general government. For national accounting purposes, physical changes in inventories should be valued at the prices current at the times when the changes occur. For these purposes, changes in inventories are obtained after adjusting the increase in book value of inventories by the inventory valuation adjustment. The need for the latter arises because the changes in the value of inventories as calculated from existing business accounting records do not meet national accounting requirements. The inventory valuation adjustment is the difference between the change in (book) value of inventories and the physical changes valued at current prices. The physical changes at average current quarter prices are calculated by applying average quarterly price indexes to the changes in various categories of inventories in volume terms.

Competing imports are those products which are both produced domestically and imported, so that substitution between the two sources of supply is possible.

The direct allocation method of recording imports involves allocating imports to the industries which use them and including them with the primary inputs to these industries in deriving the total production. With this method the intermediate consumption and final demand matrices contain only the use of domestic production, and so the intermediate use matrix does not reflect the full input structure of industries.

The GST is a tax of 10 per cent on the price of most goods and services in Australia, including those that are imported. It does not apply to sales of goods or services that are either exempt (GST-free) or input-taxed.

Net expenditure on goods and services by public authorities, other than those classified as public corporations, which does not result in the creation of fixed assets or inventories or in the acquisition of land and existing buildings or second-hand assets. It comprises expenditure on compensation of employees (other than those charged to capital works, etc.), goods and services (other than fixed assets and inventories) and consumption of fixed capital. Expenditure on repair and maintenance of roads is included. Fees, etc., charged by general government bodies for goods sold and services rendered are offset against purchases. Net expenditure overseas by general government bodies and purchases from public corporations are included. Expenditure on defence assets is classified as gross fixed capital formation.

Gross domestic product is the total market value of goods and services produced in Australia within a given period after deducting the cost of goods and services used up in the process of production, but before deducting allowances for the consumption of fixed capital. Thus gross domestic product, as here defined, is 'at market prices'. It is equivalent to gross national expenditure plus exports of goods and services less imports of goods and services.

Expenditure on new fixed assets plus net expenditure on second-hand fixed assets and including both additions and replacements.

Gross value added is defined as the value of output at basic prices minus the value of intermediate consumption at purchasers' prices. The term is used to describe gross product by industry and by sector. Basic prices valuation of output removes the distortion caused by variations in the incidence of commodity taxes and subsidies across the output of individual industries.

Net expenditure on goods and services by persons and expenditure of a current nature by private non-profit institutions serving households. This item excludes expenditures by unincorporated businesses and expenditures on assets by non-profit institutions (included in gross fixed capital formation). Also excluded are maintenance of dwellings (treated as intermediate expenses of private enterprises), but personal expenditure on motor vehicles and other durable goods and the imputed rent of owner-occupied dwellings are included. The value of 'backyard' production (including food produced and consumed on farms) is included in household final consumption expenditure and the payment of wages and salaries in kind (e.g. food and lodging supplied free to employees) is counted in both household income and household final consumption expenditure.

The indirect allocation method of recording imports includes those imports in the intermediate use of industries and in the final use categories without distinguishing the imports from the products with which they compete. This allows the intermediate use matrix to fully reflect the input structures of industries. With this method the imports are also listed under the industries’ use of primary inputs, but after deriving total production.

The chain of calculations of output requirements can be continued beyond the direct requirements of an industry. For example, in order to produce output from the chemicals industry, inputs are required directly from the mining industry. To produce this indirect requirement of the mining industry, the chemical industry needs, in turn, additional output from the mining industry, and so on in a convergent infinite series. The example has been confined to two industries directly dependent on each other, but indirect requirements can arise even in the absence of direct dependence. For example, the mining industry may not directly require any inputs from agriculture, but it requires inputs from chemicals which cannot be satisfied without input from agriculture. Therefore, there is an indirect requirement by mining for agricultural input.

IOIGs are based on the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) and the Input-Output (I-O) tables are published at this level of industry.

The IOPC is the detailed level product classification, organised according to the industry to which each product is primary. I-O tables are compiled at this level of product classification.

IOPGs are groups of IOPCs aggregated to the IOIGs to which they are primary. I-O tables are published at this level of product classification.

Intermediate consumption consists of the value of the goods and services consumed as inputs by a process of production, excluding the consumption of fixed capital.

Intra-industry flows refer to the production by units in an industry and use of that production by other units within the same industry. Australian I-O tables include the values of these flows.

Inventories consist of stocks of outputs that are held at the end of a period by the units that produced them prior to their being further processed, sold, delivered to other units or used in other ways, and stocks of products acquired from other units that are intended to be used for intermediate consumption or for resale without further processing.

If the transactions are valued at basic prices, the margins are recorded as intermediate consumption (e.g. transport, wholesale trade) of the intermediate users or final buyers. If transactions are valued at purchasers’ prices the value of margins is included, along with taxes less subsidies on products with the purchasers’ price of the good to which the margin relates.

Other subsidies on production consist of all subsidies, except subsidies on products, which resident enterprises may receive as a consequence of engaging in production. Other subsidies on production include: subsidies related to the payroll or workforce numbers (including subsidies payable on the total wage or salary bill), on numbers employed, or on the employment of particular types of persons, e.g. persons with disabilities or persons who have been unemployed for a long period.

Other taxes on production consist of all taxes that enterprises incur as a result of engaging in production, except taxes on products. Other taxes on production include: taxes related to the payroll or workforce numbers excluding compulsory social security contributions paid by employers and any taxes paid by the employees themselves out of their wages or salaries; recurrent taxes on land, buildings or other structures; some business and professional licences where no service is provided by the Government in return; taxes on the use of fixed assets or other activities; stamp duties; taxes on pollution; and taxes on international transactions.

The purchasers' price is the amount paid by the purchaser, excluding any deductible tax, in order to take delivery of a unit of a good or service at the time and place required by the purchaser. The purchasers' price of a good includes any transport charges paid separately by the purchaser to take delivery at the required time and place.

The Input output table diagram contains a simplified input-output table for illustration purposes. In this illustration, Quadrant 1 represents the industry (row) by industry (column) dimension, quadrant 2 represents the industry by final demand dimension, quadrant 3 represents primary input by industry dimension and quadrant 4 represents the primary input by final demand dimension.

• Quadrant 1
  Flows between domestic industries are shown in Quadrant 1. This is usually referred to as the inter-industry quadrant. Each column in this quadrant shows the intermediate inputs into an industry in the form of goods and services produced by other industries, and each row shows those parts of an industry's output which have been absorbed by other industries. For example, the cell at the intersection of row i and column j shows how much output of industry i has been absorbed by industry j for current production.
• Quadrant 2
  Disposition of output to categories of final demand is shown in Quadrant 2. Quadrants 1 and 2 together show the total usage of the goods and services supplied by each industry.
• Quadrant 3
  Quadrant 3 shows entries usually referred to as primary inputs: compensation of employees; gross operating surplus and gross mixed income; imports; and various types of taxes on production.
• Quadrant 4
  Quadrant 4 shows primary inputs to final demand. In the Australian Input Output Tables, only the primary input 'Taxes less subsidies on products' has values in this quadrant.

Re-exports are goods imported into Australia and then exported without having been used or transformed in any way.

A subsidy on a product is a subsidy payable per unit of a good or service. The subsidy may be a specific amount of money per unit of quantity of a good or service, or it may be calculated ad valorem as a specified percentage of the price per unit. A subsidy may also be calculated as the difference between a specified target price and the market price actually paid by a purchaser. A subsidy on a product usually becomes payable when the product is produced, sold or imported, but it may also become payable in other circumstances, such as when a product is exported, leased, transferred, delivered or used for own consumption or own capital formation.

A tax on a product is a tax that is payable per unit of some good or service. The tax may be a specific amount of money per unit of quantity of a good or service (quantity being measured either in terms of discrete units or continuous physical variables such as volume, weight, strength, distance, time, etc.), or it may be calculated ad valorem as a specified percentage of the price per unit or value of the goods or services transacted. A tax on a product usually becomes payable when it is produced, sold or imported, but it may also become payable in other circumstances, such as when a good is exported, leased, transferred, delivered, or used for own consumption or own capital formation.

Trade margin is defined as the difference between the actual or imputed price realised on a good purchased for resale and the price that would have to be paid by the distributor to replace the good at the time it is sold or otherwise disposed of.

Transport margins include any transport charges invoiced separately. The costs arising through the transport of goods from a producer to a purchaser by a third party even without separate invoice is excluded from the basic price of the good being transported and is recorded as a transport margin. The latter treatment is adopted for the I-O tables only and is a deviation from the treatment outlined in the 2008 SNA and applied in the ABS Supply-Use tables.

For information on the institutional environment of the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), including the legislative obligations of the ABS, financing and governance arrangements, and mechanisms for scrutiny of ABS operations, please see ABS Institutional Environment.

Input Output (Input-Output) tables are a part of the Australian national accounts. The standards governing national accounts are agreed internationally and detailed in the "System of National Accounts 2008" (SNA08). SNA08 is endorsed by the five major international economic organisations: the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the OECD, the World Bank and the European Commission. The complete version of SNA08 is available on-line, System of National Accounts, 2008.

The Australian national accounts differ from the recommendations in the SNA08 in certain cases where the data is not available to meet these requirements or it is not considered practical to adhere to the standards. For more information on the differences between the Australian national accounts and the SNA08 please see Australian System of National Accounts: Concepts, Sources and Methods (cat. no. 5216.0).

The Input-Output tables differ from SNA08 recommendations further in the treatment of non-invoiced transport costs which are treated on the SNA68 basis (see explanatory notes for further information).

The annual Input-Output tables are published two years after the reference period because of the need to acquire annual data from key sources, compile the Supply Use tables and then compile the Input-Output tables from the higher level Supply Use tables. The Product Details are released about 4-6 months after the main Input-Output tables.

Input-Output tables use a large number of data sources, which are of varying quality and frequency. These range from, for example, data on merchandise trade which is of high quality and frequency due to the complete enumeration of imports and exports recorded as part of the customs clearance process, to data on product supply or intermediate usage which may, depending on the product and industry, be based on annual or occasional ABS surveys or non-ABS sources such as ABARES and state mines department statistics.

The limitations surrounding the data sources, age of data, the availability of detailed product level supply and use data mean that to a greater or lesser extent a significant part of the detailed Input-Output data is extrapolated from previous information. These estimates are then confronted, reallocated and balanced against other cells within the Input-Output table framework, with more credence being given to some data sources over others.

These processes result in individual components being modelled and adjusted, and this is particularly true for those with relatively small values.

Users should therefore be cautious when considering isolated fragments of the tables, especially details at the product level and or when looking at the supply or use of products that may be related to an activity or industry but are being analysed outside the economic structure of the Input-Output tables.

The Input-Output tables contain data formatted for presentation in millions of dollars. For use by some analysts and modellers, selected data in the actual Excel spreadsheets contains additional decimal places to facilitate loading into other applications. As a consequence of the techniques used to fully populate and balance the tables relatively small values may be estimated in certain cells. Where values less than $1 million are shown, they are solely to facilitate reconciliation, row and column balancing and no significant economic meaning should be attached to them.

The result is a coherent picture of the economy and the significant relationships in it, at a point in time; however users should not interpret Input-Output data as they would directly collected administrative or survey data.

The Input Output Product Details (cat. no. 5215.0.55.001, formerly known as the 'Commodity Cards') represent a very fine disaggregation of the Input-Output Product Group level data presented in the main tables. Due to the degree of modelling used in the main tables, the Input-Output tables at the IOPG level are more robust than the more detailed data at the IOPC based detailed product level and the extent and impact of the required modelling makes this dataset less robust than the standard that the ABS would normally apply.

However, the ABS has concluded that even with these quality concerns the Product Details are a very rich dataset containing much information that is not available from any other source and provided it is used with some caution, its value outweighs these concerns.

A major unifying feature within the Australian System of National Accounts is the use of supply and use methodology and tables to confront the data and balance the components of GDP in annual terms. Input-Output (I-O) tables are an expansion of the Supply-Use (S-U) tables. They disaggregate the gross domestic product account showing inter-industry flows of goods and services. The data published in the 2017-18 releases of the Input-Output tables is consistent with the 2018-19 release of the Australian System of National Accounts (cat. no. 5204.0). Following releases of the Australian System of National Accounts (cat. no. 5204.0) may revise GDP estimates which will not be reflected within the Input Output tables for the 2017-18 reference year.

The ABS publishes a large amount of data on many aspects of the economy, both periodically and in the form of occasional surveys of particular industries or activities. Many of these, especially annual publications and occasional product surveys, are used in the Input-Output tables via the national accounts quarterly and annual supply-use balancing process and so are relatable to the Input-Output tables. However the data as presented in the Input-Output tables may differ in detail from the source data because of the Input-Output data confrontation and balancing processes, scope and coverage differences between individual publications and the national accounts, and adjustments and additions due to economic activity not generally collected in industry surveys such as gross fixed capital formation and use of financial services.

In compiling the Hybrid (Physical-Monetary Energy Use) tables extensive work is undertaken to ensure consistency between Input-Output table estimates and monetary use estimates within the Energy Account, Australia publication (cat. no. 4604.0.) As a result of this reconciliation process, there is coherence between the Hybrid table and Input-Output tables for each energy product at the level of total intermediate use, as well as for household use and exports. A perfect alignment between Hybrid Energy Use tables and Input-Output tables within specific industries and inventories is not possible because of the iterative balancing process in the production of Input-Output tables. Though these differences are expected to be very small they are inevitable when the Hybrid Energy Use table is published before the corresponding Input-Output table. The reconciliation of monetary estimates in Hybrid tables and Input-Output tables will continue to be undertaken in future releases of those publications.

Input Output tables disaggregate and describe the gross domestic product account in terms of the flows through the economy of the supply of goods and services from producers (domestic and non-resident) to their users and uses. They present a detailed analysis of the process of production, the use of goods and services of that production at basic, as well as producer prices, along with details on taxes, subsides and various types of margins.

For more detailed information about the quality dimensions of the Australian National Accounts please see the Information Paper: Quality Dimensions of the Australian National Accounts (cat. no. 5216.0.55.002).

The Input-Output tables in Excel spreadsheets can be downloaded from the Data downloads section on the Topic page.