COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
Brussels, 10.01.1997 
COM(96) 719 final 
97/0015 (ACQ 
Proposal for a 
COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) 
amending, with respect to statistical territory, Council Regulation (EC) No 1172/95 on the 
statistics relating to the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with 
non-member countries, 
(presented by the Commission) 

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 
Subject: Proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) amending Council Regulation (EC) 
No 1172/95 on the statistics relating to the trading of goods by the Community 
and its Member States with non-member countries, concerning the statistical 
territory 
1. In accordance with Article 3(1) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1172/95 the statistical 
territory for statistics relating to external trade corresponds to the customs territory 
defined by the Community customs code. 
2. The second paragraph of the same Article, however, states that the French overseas 
departments and the Canary Islands form an exception to this rule and are therefore 
excluded from the statistical territory. 
3. However, France and Spain have requested that these territories be included in the 
Community statistical territory further to similar national decisions. This is a measure 
which, by reducing the number of exceptions, improves the harmonisation of concepts. 
4. By implementing this amendment, the French overseas departments and the Canary 
Islands will no longer be considered non-member countries for the purpose of external 
trade statistics; trading of goods between these territories and Member States other than 
France and Spain respectively become intracommunity trade with these Member States; 
trading between the French overseas departments and France or the Canary Islands and 
Spain disappear from Community statistics and finally, trading between these territories 
and non-member countries will be considered trading between France and Spain and non-
member countries. 
5. It is therefore necessary to amend Article 3(2) and Article 4(1) of Regulation (EC) No 
1172/95 by deleting the parts referring to the French overseas departments and the Canary 
Islands. 
PROPOSAL FOR 
COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) N° /96 
of 
amending, with respect to statistical territory, Council Regulation (EC) No 1172/95 on the 
statistics relating to the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with 
non-member countries, 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 
having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular 
Article 113 thereof 
having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 
whereas the decision by the French Republic to include the overseas departments in France's 
statistical territory as from 1 January 1997, 
whereas the decision by the Kingdom of Spain to include the Canary Islands in Spain's 
statistical territory as from the same date, 
whereas the definition of the statistical territory of the Community set out in Article 3 of 
Council Regulation (EC) No 1172/951 and the field of application of the statistics relating to 
the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with non-member countries as 
defined in Article 4 of the above-mentioned Regulation need to be adapted accordingly, 
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION 
Article 1 
Council Regulation (EC) N° 1172/95 shall be amended as follows: 
1) Article 3(2) shall be replaced by the following: 
"By way of derogation from paragraph 1, the statistical territory of the Community shall 
include Helgoland." 
2) The second paragraph of Article 4(1) shall be deleted. 
Article 2 
This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 January 1997. 
OJN°L 118 of 25.05.1995, p. 10. 
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. 
Done at Brussels, for the Council 
ISSN 0254-1475 
COM(96) 719 final 
DOCUMENTS 
EN 17 
Catalogue number : CB-C0-96-731-EN-C 
ISBN 92-78-14113-5 
Office for Official Publications of the European Communities 
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