NoC223/6 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 31.8.92
OpinionontheproposalforaCouncilRegulation(EEC)ontransitstatisticsandstorage
statisticsrelatingtothetradingofgoodsbetweenMemberStates
(92/C223/02)
On4May1992theCouncildecidedtoconsulttheEconomicandSocialCommittee,under
Article100AoftheEECTreaty,ontheabovementioned proposal.
TheSectionforEconomic,FinancialandMonetaryQuestions,whichwasresponsiblefor
preparingtheCommittee'sworkonthesubject,adopteditsOpinionon12May1992.The
RapporteurwasMrGiacomelli .
Atits297thPlenarySession(meetingof26May1992)theEconomicandSocialCommittee
adoptedthefollowingOpinionunanimously .
2.Generalcomments
2.1.Currentsituation
Thesystemofcompilingstatisticsonintra-Community
tradeiscurrentlybasedontheformalities,documenta­
tionandcontrolsapplyingtotradeingoodsbetween
MemberStates.Theseformalities,documentsandcon­
trolsderiveprincipallyfromataxobligationlinkedto
VATdeclarationsinrespectofintra-Community trade
sincetheprovisionalretentionoftheprincipleoflevying
taxesinthecountryofdestinationcontinuestoexempt
goodsfromtaxationinthecountryofconsignment .
Witheffectfrom1January1988theformalitieswere
simplifiedconsiderablybytheintroductionofthesingle
administrative documenttowhichareaddedseparate
sheetscontainingthedatarequiredforstatisticson
tradebetweenMemberStates.Dataisalsoprovidedin
respectofECgoodsintransit,withorwithoutabreak
intransport;statisticsinrespectofECornon-EC
goodsenteringwarehousesarerecordedundertherules
governingcustomswarehousessetoutinCouncilRegu­
lation(EEC)No2503/88of25July1988.1.Introduction
1.1.Theestablishment oftheSingleMarketon
1January1993willinvolvetheremovalofcontrols
atintra-Community frontiersand,consequently ,the
abolitionofthesystemofcollecting,atfrontiers,
accompanying documentsinrespectofgoods.
1.1.1.Inordertoensurethatstatisticscontinueto
becompiledonintra-Community trade,theMember
Stateshavedrawnupanewsystemofcollectingdata,
knownasthe'Intrastatsystem',whichwillcomeinto
forceon1January1993.
1.2.Whilstmaintainingthecriticalstandpointwhich
underliesitsOpiniononthe1989proposalforaCouncil
Regulation—whichhassincebecomeCouncilRegu­
lation(EEC)No3330/91—onthestatisticsrelatingto
thetradingofgoodsbetweenMemberStates(ESC552/
89—SYN181of26April1989)(*),theCommitteeis
nonethelessabletoendorsetheproposalforaRegu­
lationunderreviewinasmuchasitsatisfiestherequire­
mentsetoutinArticle31oftheabovementioned basic
Regulation (EEC)No3330/91.UnderArticle31ofthe
basicRegulationtheCouncilistoadopt,onaproposal
fromtheCommission ,theprovisionsneededtoenable
theestablishment ofstatisticsotherthanstatisticsof
tradebetweenMemberStates.Apartfromtheuncer­
taintyasregardsthetaxaspect,whichhassincebeen
resolved,thecriticismexpressedbytheCommitteein
itsearlierOpinioncastsdoubtsontheapplicability,
reliabilityandexhaustiveness oftheproposednewstat­
isticssystem.
1.3.UnderArticle4oftheabovementioned Regu­
lation,transitstatisticsaretobecompiledinrespectof
goods,ofECornon-ECorigin,whicharetransported,
withorwithouttranshipment ,acrossaMemberState,
withoutbeingstoredthereforreasonsnotinherentin
theirtransport.Storagestatisticsaretobecompiledon
goodsfromnon-ECcountrieswhichenterorleave
customswarehousesorfreezones,inaccordancewith
theprovisionsofArticle2(2)ofRegulation (EEC)
No1736/75.2.2.Thesituationpost1992
Theabolitionofcontrolsatfrontierswitheffectfrom
1January1993,andtheshiftingofresponsibilityfor
keepingrecordstotheaccountingsystemsofundertak­
ings,willentailabolitionofthecurrentsourcesofintra­
Communitystatistics,i.e.thedocumentsintroduced
principallytomeettaxrequirementsandfulfillingthe
secondaryfunctionofenablingstatisticstobecompiled.
Asaconsequenceoftheirabolition,theinformation
whichtheyprovidedontransitandstorageofgoods
tradedbetweenECMemberStateswillnolongerbe
available.
2.3.Thecaseformaintainingtransitstatistics
2.3.1.AlthoughanumberofMemberStatesshow
nospecialinterestinmaintainingtransitandstorage (!)OJNoC159,26.6.1989,p.16.

31.8.92 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC223/7
statisticsafter1992,otherMemberStatescontinueto
attachconsiderableimportancetothesestatistics.Their
intereststemsfromthefactthat,astheyhaveavery
largevolumeoftransittrafficbecauseoftheirgeo­
graphicallocation,theyhaveestablishedtheinfrastruc­
turenecessarytomeetrequirementsinrespectofrecep­
tion,transhipmentandliaisonwiththecountriesof
consignmentandthecountriesofdestination .
2.3.2.ThemaincountriesinvolvedaretheBenelux
countriesandtheFederalRepublicofGermany.Inthe
caseoftheBeneluxcountries,goodsintransitrepresent
abouthalfthetotalvolumeofgoodshandledbytheir
mainports.Thegoodsinquestionareshippedonwards
todestinationsthroughoutthehinterlandofwestern
Europe.TheLuxembourgauthoritiesareinterestedin
transitstatisticsinviewofthefactthatthereareplans
toextendtheairportandmakeitintoanimportant
centreforairfreight.TheGermanNorthSeaports,for
theirpart,haveaveryextensivetransittrafficdirected
lesstowardswesternEuropeancountriesandmore
towardstheinteriorofeastEuropeancountriesand,
inthecaseofgoodstransportedonwardsbysea,to
Scandinavia .
2.3.3.AlthoughFrancehasnotformallydeclared
itselfinfavourofmaintainingstatisticsinthisfield,it
hasnonethelessdemonstrated aninterestinthedrafting
ofthepresentproposalforaRegulation .
2.3.4.Thereisnodoubtingthefactthatthecompil­
ingoftransitandstoragestatisticswillprovidethe
Statesconcernedwithvaluableinformationonthevol­
umeofinternationaltransporttoandfromotherMem­
berStates.Thesestatisticswillmakeitpossibletoassess
theextenttowhichinfrastructure isbeingutilized,to
planinvestmentinthisareaandtohaveanaccurate
pictureoftheactivitiesoftransportandtranshipment
undertakingsinvolvedintransittrade.
2.3.5.TransitviaanECMemberStatemayalsobe
ofinteresttoanumberofthatState'stradingpartners
sinceaccesstosuchstatisticswillshowthemhowmuch
oftheirimportandexporttradeishandledbytheports
orairportsoftheMemberStateconcerned.
2.3.6.Finally,transitandstoragestatisticsmakeit
possibletoassessthecompetitivepositionofportsand
airports.
2.3.7.Itisessentialfortransitstatisticstobespecific.
Thefactorswhichdeterminetransittrafficdifferfrom
thoseinrespectofimportsandexports.Thebusiness
decisionswhichdeterminethevolumeoftransittraffic
arelargelytakeninthirdcountries;asaresultthe
volumeoftransittrafficdevelopsinanindependent
waywhichissometimesunrelatedtothedevelopment
ofimportsandexports.
2.3.8.Itfollowsthattransitstatisticswillonlymeet
thedesiredobjectivesiftheyincludeinformationinrespectofanumberofcharacteristics ,e.g.thenature
andweightofthegoodsconcerned,thesecondmode
oftransportused,bearinginmindthattransitalways
involvestwomodesoftransport(i.e.themodeof
transportusedtoconveygoodstothecountryoftransit
andthatusedtoshipthemfromthecountryoftransit),
thewayinwhichgoodsintransitarepackaged,whether
ornotcontainersareused(cf.theboxonthesingle
administrative document),thecountryoforiginand
thecountryofdestination,theplaceofloading/
unloadingandtranshipment ,andthenationalityofthe
roadhauliers.
2.4.Thestatisticalinformationmediumtobeused
post1992
2.4.1.Theexpectedincreaseintradeafter1992is
boundtogenerateanincreaseinthevolumeoftrans­
port.Thisinturnwillleadtoagrowthintransittraffic
throughtheMemberStatesmostinvolvedbecauseof
theirlocation.Thebestmethodofcompilingstatistics
inrespectofthetransitofgoodsinvolvingtranshipment
wouldthereforehavebeenonthebasisofcustoms
documentation sincethisinformation isthemostcom­
prehensiveandreliableavailableanditincludesfigures
onthemodesoftransportused.
2.4.2.Theabolitionofinspectionsandcustoms
documentation inrespectofintra-Community trade
willremove,atleastpartially,avaluablesourceof
statisticaldatainrespectnotonlyoftransittrafficbut
alsooftradebetweenMemberStates.Anxietyinrespect
ofthelatterstatisticswasexpressedbytheCommittee
initsOpinionof26April1989ontheproposalfora
Regulationonthestatisticsrelatingtothetradingof
goodsbetweenMemberStates(ESC552/89—SYN181).
TheensuingCouncilRegulation [CouncilRegulation
(EEC)No3330/91]failedtodispelalltheCommittee's
misgivingsandresultedonlyinthedefinitionofan
observationmethodforstatisticsofintra-Community
trade.Article31oftheabovementioned Regulation
statesthattheprocedureforcompilingtransitand
storagestatisticsistobesetoutinasubsequentCouncil
Regulation .
2.4.3.Astheneedtomaintaintransitstat­
istics—transitbeingregardedasanimportantaspectof
intra-Community trade—hasbeenaccepted,inparticu­
larbyanumberofMemberStates,attemptshavebeen
madetofindsolutionstotheproblemofhowtomake
goodthelossofthesourceofinformationconstituted
bycustomsdocumentswhicharetobeabolishedfor
intra-Community tradewitheffectfrom1January
1993.
2.4.4.AstherewillnolongerbeanyECcustoms
documentsonmaritimeandairtransportoperations
betweenMemberStates,theviewhasbeentakenthat
statisticsoftransitoperationsinvolvingtranshipment
couldbecompiledonthebasis,interalia,oftransport
documentsand,inthecaseofmaritimetransport,on
ships'manifests.Manifestsprovideasummarylistof
allthegoodsbeingtransportedatanyonetimebya
particularvessel.Themanifestslistthenumber,mark

NoC223/8 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 31.8.92
areplanningtodoso.ThepresentdraftRegulation,
whichpursuesthesamegeneralaimastheabovemen­
tionedRegulation (EEC)No3330/91,establishesanew
systemofdatacollectiononthebasisofdirectcontact
withthepartiesresponsibleforprovidinginformation
andlaysdownthemethodologytobefollowed.This
methodologyimposescertainlimitsdesignedtoavoid
increasingtheburdenontherespondentsandtoavoid
excessivedifferencesbetweenMemberStates.Thedraft
Regulationalsostipulatesthedatamediaandclassifi­
cationstobeusedandtheinformationtobedeclared.
2.4.7.1.Theproposaldoes,however,givetheMem­
berStatesadegreeoflatitude,inviewoftheirdiffering
situations,withoutcompromising theintendedallevi­
ationoftheburdenontheinformationrespondents .
2.4.7.2.Withthatsameaiminview,minimum
thresholdsarelaiddownwhichwillhavetobeobserved
bytheMemberStates.Theinformationrespondents
willnotbeobligedtomakedeclarationsforstatistical
purposesinrespectofamountsfallingbelowthese
thresholds .andcodenumbersofgoods,andthenamesofthe
transhippingcompaniesandtherecipients.Thereis
alsoaseparatemanifestlistingallthegoodstobe
unloadedateachportofdestination .Manifestsare
drawnupattheportwherevesselsareloaded.They
compriseseveralcopies,oneofwhichishandedto
customsofficials.Ifmanifestsaretobeusedforcompil­
ingstatisticsonintra-Community transit,theywillhave
toincludeanumberofitemsofinformation :theMem­
berStateoforiginandtheMemberStateofdestination,
thenatureofthegoods,theweightofthegoods,the
modeoftransporttobeusedtoconveythegoodsafter
theirshipmentbysea(thesecondmodeoftransport).
AndadistinctionshouldbedrawnbetweenT1goods
(ECgoods)andT2goods(non-ECgoods).Themani­
festsshouldbemadeavailabletothetransitMember
State.
2.4.4.1.Althoughthemanifestappearstobethe
mostsuitabledocumentforfulfillingstatisticalrequire­
ments,underthedraftRegulationunderreview,the
MemberStatesconcernedareentitledtouseother
informationmedia,suchascommercialinvoices,pro­
videdsuchmediacontainthedatanecessarytomeet
statisticalrequirements .
2.4.4.2.Closecooperationwiththecustomsauthori­
tiesis,however,toberecommended ,atleastfora
temporaryperiod.
2.4.4.3.Itisknown,forexample,thatstatisticsare
compiledinportsintheFederalRepublicofGermany
withtheaidofthecustomsauthorities .IftheMember
Statesaretobefreetodesignateanadministration
whichmayprovidetransitstatistics,itisverylikely
thatthisadministration willbethecustomsservice.
2.4.5.Althoughcustomsdocumentsmayprovidea
reliablesourceoftransitstatistics,othersolutionsare
envisagedwithaviewtoreducingtheperiodduring
whichassistancecontinuestobesoughtfromthecus­
tomsservice.Ithasbeenproposedthatbodieswhich
haveaninterestinthemovementofgoodsinportsbe
linkedtoanelectronicdatasystem,establishedbythe
portauthorities,whichrecordsmaritimetransportand
transitstatistics.
2.4.6.Ithasalsobeenproposedthatassistanceof
thetransportundertakingsconcernedbesoughtfor
thepurposeofcompilingtransitstatistics.Adifficulty
arises,however,hereinthattheseundertakingshave
informationonthetransportoperationstheycarryout
withintheirparticularsector.Transitstatisticsmust,
however,coveralltransportoperations .Shipowners,
roadhauliers ,inland-waterway carriersandrailway
companiesare,however,notfamiliarwiththecharac­
teristicsoftransportoperationscarriedoutbyother
modesoftransport.
2.4.7.ItisstatedintheExplanatoryMemorandum
tothedraftRegulationunderreviewthat,underthe
presentcircumstances ,theCommunityhasnoneedof
transitandstoragestatistics.AnumberofMember
Statesdo,however,alreadycompilesuchstatisticsor3.Specificcomments
3.1.Article3
Article3definesthegoodsinrespectofwhichtransit
statisticsaretobecompiled.
3.2.Article4
Article4definesthegoodsinrespectofwhichstorage
statisticsaretobecompiledinagivenMemberState.
3.3.Article5
Article5(1)statesthattheMemberStatesareto
authorizethoseresponsibleforprovidingstatistical
informationtouseadministration orcommercialdocu­
mentsalreadyrequiredforotherpurposesasthestatisti­
calinformationmedium.Withaview,toachieving
standardization ,MemberStatesmay,however,estab­
lishexclusivelystatisticalmediasincetheinformation
respondentshavetobegivenachoiceastothemedium
whichtheywilluse.
3.3.1.Theextremelyflexiblenatureofthesepro­
visionsmaygiverisetosurpriseinviewofthefactthat
thecollectingofdataforstatisticalpurposesnormally
requiresamorerigorousapproach.Itwouldtherefore
havebeenpreferabletohavegivenanexhaustivelist
ofthedocumentswhichmaybeusedasinformation
media.
3.4.Article6
Article6(2)statesthattheMemberStatesmayalleviate
theburdenoncommercialoperatorsbytransferringthe
obligationinrespectofinformation ,inwholeorin
part,totheadministrative serviceswhichmaytakethe
placeoftheinformationrespondents .

31.8.92 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities NoC223/9
4.Conclusion
4.1.Inviewofthefactthattransitandstatistics
areclearlybothimportantandusefultoanumberof
MemberStates,theapproachadoptedbytheCom­
missionindrawingupthedraftRegulationmayappear
tobeslightlylax.TheMemberStatesaregivencon­
siderablelatitudeastotheinformation mediatobe
employed,theburdentobeplacedontheinformation
respondentsandtheselectionoftheadministrative
servicewhichmaycollectthedataintheplaceofthe
informationrespondent .
4.2.InitsearlierOpinionsonthevariousother
proposalsforECinstrumentsinthisfield—theproposal
underreviewistobethefinalproposalinthefieldof
tradebetweenMemberStates—theCommitteealways
expressedconcernovertheneedtosafeguardthevalue
andthereliabilityofstatistics.Whilstwelcomingthe
desiretoalleviatetheburdenplacedoninformation
respondents,theCommitteetruststhatthedraftRegu­
lationunderreviewwillmeettheabovementioned con­
cern.
4.3.TheCommittee,accordingly,expectstransitand
storagestatisticstobeofahighquality.Thisrequire­
mentappliestoallECstatisticsandisstipulatedinthe
rulessetoutpreciselyandindetailintheCommuni­
cationontheevolutionoftheEuropeanstatistical
system(1).3.5.Article7
UnderthefirstindentofArticle7,theMemberStates
maymakeuseofdifferentdescriptionsornomencla­
turestodesignategoodsforthepurposeofthesestat­
isticscoveredbythedraftRegulation .
3.5.1.Thequestionarisesastowhether,intheevent
oftheexchangeofinformationnotcoveredbythe
draftRegulation,theuseofdifferentdescriptionsor
nomenclatures willnotimpedetheexchangeofdata
betweenMemberStatescompilingtransitandstorage
statisticsandindeedthecommunication ofsuchinfor­
mationtoMemberStateswhich,whilstnothaving
theirownstatistics,arenonethelessinterestedinbeing
informedofthestatisticsdrawnupbytheirtrading
partnersforthereasonssetoutaboveundertheheading
Generalcomments .
3.6.Articles8,9and10(1)
Theprovisionssetoutinthesearticleswouldappear
tofulfiltherequirements asregardsthenatureand
numberoftheitemsofinformationtobeincludedon
thestatisticalinformationmediumusedinrespectof
transitandstoragestatistics.
3.7.Article11
Attentionwasdrawn,undertheGeneralcomments,to
thespecificnatureofthetaskofcompilingtransit
statistics.Itmustbeassumedthattheminimum
thresholdsbelowwhichinformationrespondentsare
notrequiredtosubmitinformationhavebeencarefully
selected.Thesethresholdshavebeendrawnupwitha
viewtoalleviatingtheburdenplacedontheinformation
respondents .Thesocialpartners,whichincludethe
mainprofessionalorganizationsconcerned,werenot,
however,consultedinadvance,forthereasonssetout
onthefinalpageofthedraftRegulation . HOJNoC47 ,21.2.1992,p.4.
DoneatBrussels,26May1992.
TheChairman
oftheEconomicandSocialCommittee
MichaeGEUENICH