16/06/2023 – Changes in the production of labor cost indices in the first quarter of 2023
Starting from the publication of the first quarter of 2023 and in accordance with European regulations, the reference year for the labor cost index is now 2020. The average of the 4 quarterly indices of 2020, weighted by the volume of work (total number of hours paid for each quarter), is set to 100. It should be noted that due to the restrictions imposed during the health crisis, the volume of work varied significantly during the year 2020 in certain sectors such as accommodation and catering. In this case, the simple average (unweighted) of the quarterly indices for the year 2020 can deviate significantly from the weighted average, which is 100.
This change in the reference year has an impact on the levels of the indices but does not affect their quarterly or annual changes. However, it has been accompanied by a revision of the seasonal adjustment method, which may marginally affect the quarterly changes since 1998. Additionally, certain employer costs included in the labor cost index have been updated with the results of the French part of the European survey on labor costs in 2020. This results in a slight upward revision of the average annual changes in the labor cost index for the period 2017 to 2019 (approximately 0.1 point each year).
15/06/2023 – Update of the composition of indices BT47, EV3, and EV4
Starting from the publication of the indices for Building, Public Works, and Miscellaneous Construction in April 2023, on 15/06/2023, the weights and inputs of indices BT47 “Electricity,” EV3 “Creation of Green Spaces,” and EV4 “Maintenance of Green Spaces” have been revised to better reflect the cost structure in the professional sectors concerned. The detailed new compositions are specified in the official notice corresponding to the publication of the April 2023 indices and in the methodological notes “Detailed Composition of BT Indices based on 2010” and “Detailed Composition of Miscellaneous Construction Indices based on 2010.”
The monthly changes in indices BT47, EV3, and EV4 in April 2023 are calculated based on their new structure and applied to their values in March 2023 to obtain their values in April 2023, without revising the previously published values.
06/06/2023 – Change in method and estimation of rates of personal travel departures
Starting from 2022, the method of collecting and estimating rates of personal travel departures has changed to improve the statistical quality of the produced information. These changes make it impossible to compare with previous years. Therefore, this new series cannot be compared with the previous one.
March 2023 28/03/2023 – Imported raw materials price indices: correction of a base error on certain series
The indices 010002086, 010002087, 010751335, 010002089, 010002090, 010002091, 010002092, 010002093, 010002094, 010002095, 010002096, 010002097, 010002098, 010002099, 010002100, and 010002101 were previously expressed on a base of 100 for the month of January 2010 and not for the entire year 2010 as indicated. This error was corrected in the publication of August 26, 2022, which covered the month of July 2022. The series as previously published until July 2022 can be found in this document.
24/03/2023 – New presentation of variations in the costs of production factors in construction
Starting from the publication of production cost indices in construction for the fourth quarter of 2022, on 24/03/2023, the variations in the costs of production factors in construction are presented according to the activity sectors of building and public works. The building activity sector includes group 41.2 “Construction of residential and non-residential buildings” of the French Activity Classification and a part of division 43 “Specialized construction activities” related to buildings. The public works activity sector includes division 42 “Civil engineering” of the French Activity Classification and a part of division 43 “Specialized construction activities” related to civil engineering. Along with this new presentation, six new cost index series are published, concerning major construction equipment (010761830), finishing equipment in buildings (010761831), miscellaneous costs in construction (010761832), transport in building construction (010761833), transport in public works (010761834), and waste treatment in public works (010761835).
03/03/2023 – Methodological changes to the industrial production index and volume production index in construction
The series of the industrial production index undergoes an annual review process on a five-year cycle. This process aims to ensure the robustness of the indices and adapt them to economic or technical changes, including the monitoring of new products and the removal of those with very low production. The results of the fifth wave of revision, which covers approximately one-fifth of the indices, are included in this publication. The revised series are backcasted until January 2020, which may result in revisions since that date. The seasonal adjustment and number of working days correction models (CVS-CJO) have also been revised to improve the quality of the index, and the annual weights have been updated. In parallel, the methodology for the production index in construction has undergone two significant changes: (i) It is now calculated based on data from nominative social declarations (DSN), replacing surveys. This leads to revisions in the past indices, especially over the past three years. (ii) The classification used for the production index in construction is now NAF rev.2. Three new series are created (F41, F42, F43) with retrocasted values since 2005. The series for total construction (gross, CVS-CJO) remain available since 1990.