The clearance of the Producer’s Price Survey (PPS) has been renewed by the National Statistical Coordination Board in line with its Statistical Survey Review and Clearance System (SSRCS). The PPS is a monthly undertaking of the National Statistics Office (NSO), with manufacturing establishments as the respondents. It collects producer’s prices of commodities needed in the computation of the Producer’s Price Index (PPI) for Manufacturing. The index provides a measure of the changes in the producer’s prices of manufactured commodities, serves as deflator to the value of production index in the estimation of volume of production index and also serves as deflator in the manufacturing industry of the national accounts. Producer’s price is the unit price of the commodity as it leaves the establishment and includes any indirect tax or subsidy levied/received on the commodity.

The sampling design adopted for the PPS is purposive sampling in which the selection of the establishments and the selection of the commodities were based on certain criteria. The PPS covers 292 manufacturing establishments in the country, 71 percent of which are located in the National Capital Region while the remaining 29 percent are situated in other regions, except in Regions I, II, V and IX. Around 550 manufactured commodities comprise the market basket for the index. The survey uses a shuttle type of questionnaire wherein the establishments are visited every 10th to 25th day of each month and are provided with a running account of all its responses for the year. The data items contained in the questionnaire include the name of product, brand name, product specification, unit of measure and producer’s price of the product.

The output generated from the survey is the PPI for Manufacturing which is presently based on 1994 prices. The PPI is available 55 days after the reference month and is included in the press release issued for the results of NSO’s Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries which generates the value of production index for manufacturing. The press release and the statistical tables are also posted in the NSO website.

The total cost of the survey for 2004 is Php 192,000.00 which covers maintenance and other operating expenses. The amount covers the traveling expenses and supplies for the survey during the year.

The SSRCS under which the survey clearance was granted is a mechanism instituted by the NSCB through Memorandum Circular Nos. 4-88 and 04-95. It aims to: (1) ensure sound design for data collection, (2) minimize the burden placed upon respondents, (3) effect economy in statistical data collection, (4) achieve better coordination of government statistical activities, and (5) inform the private sector and the public in general that a government survey operation has passed clearance and enjoin their cooperation in the conduct of the survey.

For inquiries please contact, Ms. Cynthia S. Regalado or Ms. Diana Mae C. Basiño at telephone numbers 890-9404 / 895-2346 or email address cs.regalado@nscb.gov.ph / dmc.basino@nscb.gov.ph

ROMULO A. VIROLA
Secretary General