Indicadores de consumo aparente de bens industriais : metodologia e resultados

The aim of this paper is to describe in details the methodology used to construct the apparent consumption indicators of industrial goods in the Brazilian economy - defined as domestic production plus imports minus exports - and report the results. This indicator is important in view of the difficulties to obtain timely measures for industrial goods demand, whereas supply data are comprehensive and diversified. Departing from the principle of supply and demand equilibrium, the apparent consumption is a good proxy to demand behavior. The indices shown in this text are calculated in a monthtly basis since january, 1998, for different aggregated levels of industrial goods: general industry, manufacturing industry, capital goods industry, intermediate goods industry, consumer good industry (durables, semidurables and non-durables) and 22 different sectors of activity, as defined in the National Classification of Economic Activities (CNAE) of the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). This paper also shows the method to obtain a monthly indicator for the gross fixed capital formation of the Brazilian economy, that is based on the apparent consumption of capital goods and that aims to replicate the methodology used by IBGE to obtain the measure of the gross fixed capital formation in the System of National Accounts.