Glossary:National accounts (NA)

From Statistics Explained

National accounts, often called macroeconomic accounts, are statistics focusing on the structure and evolution of economies. They describe and analyse, in an accessible and reliable way, the economic interactions (transactions) within an economy. There are an almost unimaginable large number of these transactions.

The national accounts sector refers to the whole economy (a country, the European Union or the euro area) as a sector. All institutional units operating within an economy can be assigned to a particular institutional sector. Breakdowns by institutional sector are given by the sector accounts.

The institutional sectors group institutional units with broadly similar characteristics and behaviour, the following ones can be distinguished:

• households and non-profit institutions serving households;
• non-financial corporations;
• financial corporations;
• government.

Transactions with non-residents and the financial claims of residents on non-residents, or vice versa, are recorded in the "rest of the world" account.

Macroeconomic developments, such as economic growth and inflation, are driven by the actions of the individual economic subjects in an economy. Grouping economic subjects with similar behaviour into institutional sectors helps significantly in understanding the functioning of the economy.

Related concepts

• European system of national and regional accounts
• Gross domestic product

Statistical data

• National accounts – GDP

Source

• Eurostat
• ECB and Eurostat - sector accounts