Concepts: G

The concepts described on these pages are words and expressions used in statistics with a specific, limited meaning. In everyday speech the word may have a different meaning. The same concept may mean a different thing in different sets of statistics. For example, the concept “unemployed” has three different definitions.

In connection with each definition you can find information about which sets of statistics use the concept. If you are looking for statistical figures, go from the definition to the statistics page.

GEP: Gross value added (GVA), Employment and Population.

The GEP-deviation indicator is calculated from the three above mentioned components by comparing regional growth percentages to those of the whole country and by adding up the differences in data for the whole country and the regions.

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The Gini coefficient is the most common indicator describing income differences. The higher value the Gini coefficient gets, the more unequally is income distributed. The biggest possible value for the Gini coefficient is one. Then the highest earning income recipient receives all the income. The smallest Gini coefficient value is 0, when the income of all income recipients is equal. In the income distribution statistics, Gini coefficients are presented as percentages (multiplied by one hundred). The Gini coefficient describes relative income differences. The Gini coefficient does not change if the incomes of all income earners change by the same percentage.

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GWP (Global Warming Potential) factors used in commensurating different greenhouse gases. The greenhouse gas inventory uses the factors of the IPCC Assessment Reports decided under the UNFCCC and the EU at a given time. The factors of the Fifth IPCC Assessment Report (AR5) are used in the EU reporting starting from the 2023 submission and in the Paris Agreement reporting from 2024 on.

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There are several definitions for this concept

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General death rate indicates the number of deaths per 1,000 or 100,000 persons of the mean population.

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Education intended to provide information and skills which facilitate functioning and influencing in society.

Comment:
General education comprises pre-primary education, comprehensive education, general upper secondary education and other non-vocational studies, for example, at liberal adult education institutions.

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General government debt is general government sector consolidated gross debt valued at nominal value, and it is also known as EDP debt (= Excessive Deficit Proce-dure).

It comprises bonds, short-term securities, short-term and long-term loans and deposits received by general government from other sectors of the national economy or from the rest of the world. The EDP debt concept used in reporting according to the European Union's Growth and Stability Pact differs from that of ESA 2010 with regard to valuation and coverage. Finan-cial assets and liabilities are valued at market value in ESA 2010-compliant financial accounts, whereas general government EDP debt is valued at nominal value. Of the financial claims in ESA 2010, for example, deriva-tives, trade credits and advances are not included in the loan stock.

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General government deficit also called EDP deficit (= Excessive Deficit Procedure), corresponds with the general government net lending/borrowing in the national accounts.

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The general government sector consists of state budget economy (on-budget activities) and extra-budgetary funds (off-budget activities).

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General government total expenditure describes the sum of general government's expenditure type. Consolidated expenditure excludes property expenditure, income transfers and capital transfers between general government sub-sectors. Acquisitions of goods and services between general government sub-sectors are not consolidated, however. Thus, total expenditure is to some extent gross expenditure.

The General government, total (S.13) level is usually viewed as consolidated and sub-sector data as unconsolidated.

The ratio of total general government expenditure to gross domestic product is also called the expenditure ratio.

General government total expenditure is calculated by adding together the following expenditure types:

Consolidated/unconsolidated total expenditure =
P22K intermediate consumption or acquired services and goods +
D1K Compensation of employees, payable +
D29K Commodity taxes paid +
D3K Subsidies paid +
D4K Consolidated/unconsolidated property expenditure paid +
D5K Income taxes paid +
D62K Social benefits other than social transfers in kind, payable +
D632K Social transfers in kind, payable
D7K Consolidated/unconsolidated current transfers paid +
D9K Consolidated/unconsolidated capital transfers paid +
P5K Gross capital formation, i.e. investments
NP Net acquisitions of non-produced assets

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The item General merchandise on a balance of payments (BOP) basis includes goods whose ownership is transferred between a domestic and foreign unit and that do not belong to another special category, such as goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold and are not part of a service. General merchandise is recorded at market value and is based on the free on board (FOB) principle.

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A general partnership must have at least two founders who may be either natural or legal persons. Each partner in a general partnership is responsible for the partnership's liabilities to their full extent as if they were their own debt. A general partnership is entered into the Trade Register.

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Geographic information is information of an object, whose location is known and it always contains a reference to a particular place or area. Geographic information can also describe any activity or phenomenon that has a location. Geographic information is a data entity consisting of spatial data and attribute data that describe the characteristics of the object or phenomenon.

Statistics Finland’s geographic dataset include, e.g. population grid data, PAAVO postal code areas and road traffic accidents.

See also attribute data and spatial data

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Gigawatt hour (GWh) is a unit of energy used to express the amount of energy, i.e. electricity and heat. 1 GWh = 1,000 MWh = 1,000,000 kWh = 1 GWh = 3.6 TJ

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When goods are sent abroad for processing, the producer owns the raw materials and the finished product and carries the risk for the whole production process. Economic ownership lies with the foreign producer. The balance of payment recordings depend on whether it is a question of goods sent to Finland for processing charged to a foreign unit or goods sent abroad for processing charged to a Finnish unit.

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Global production covers goods sent to Finland for processing charged to a foreign unit, goods sent abroad for processing charged to a Finnish unit, merchanting and factoryless production.

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Non-monetary gold covers all gold other than monetary gold. Monetary gold is owned by monetary authorities and held as a reserve asset. Non-monetary gold can be in the form of bullion (i.e. coins, ingots, or bars with a purity of at least 995 parts per 1,000, including such gold held in allocated gold accounts), gold powder, and gold in other unwrought or semi-manufactured forms.

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This component covers moveable goods for which a change of ownership occurs between residents and non-residents. It includes the item general merchandise on a balance of payments (BOP) basis, net exports of goods under merchanting and non-monetary gold.

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There are several definitions for this concept

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Any single road motor vehicle designed to carry goods (e.g. a lorry), or any coupled combination of road vehicles designed to carry goods, (i.e. lorry with trailer(s), or road tractor with semi-trailer and with or without trailer).

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Road vehicle designed, exclusively or primarily, to carry goods.

Included are:
a) Light goods road vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of not more than 3 500 kg, designed exclusively or primarily, to carry goods, e.g. vans and pick-ups

b) Heavy goods road vehicles with a gross vehicle weight above 3 500 kg, designed, exclusively or primarily, to carry goods

c) Road tractors

d) Agricultural tractors permitted to use roads open to public traffic.

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When goods are sent abroad for processing, the Finnish producer owns the raw materials and the finished product and carries the risk for the whole production process. Economic ownership is in Finland. The Finnish producer pays to the foreign processor, which can also be its affiliate, compensation for the work done (service). The manufacturing premium is recorded in balance of payments in Finland's imports of services. Goods exported from Finland for processing and finished goods imported back to Finland are removed in the balance of payments from Finland's goods trade, because their ownership does not change. Goods bought from aboard that have been remodelled abroad and goods sold abroad that have been manufactured abroad are, in turn, added in the balance of payments to Finland's goods trade.

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When goods are sent to Finland for processing, the producer owns the raw materials and the finished product and carries the risk for the whole production process. Economic ownership is abroad. The foreign producer pays to the Finnish processor, which can also be its affiliate, compensation for the work done (service). The manufacturing premium is recorded in balance of payments in Finland's exports of services. Goods imported to Finland for processing and finished goods exported back from Finland are removed in the balance of payments from Finland's goods trade, because their ownership does not change.

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Goods trade in balance of payments terms includes goods whose ownership changes between a domestic and foreign unit, and which are not parts of a service. Usual merchandise is recorded at market value according to the FOB principle. Exports are recorded in the statistics by the country of destination, imports from the EU area by the country of consignment and imports from outside the EU by the country of origin.

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Finnish Customs produces statistics on goods trade across Finnish borders. Data on Finland's trade with countries outside the EU are derived from the customs clearance system. Statistical data are reported monthly by importers and exporters to Finnish Customs concerning trade inside the EU according to the Intrastat system. Finnish Customs compiles statistics on imports at CIF value.

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Government authorities comprise the state and its agencies and institutions, municipalities, joint municipal boards and the Region of Åland and its agencies.

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This category includes enterprises owned by the state, municipalities, joint municipal boards and the Region of Åland. State-owned enterprises are governed by the Act on State Enterprises (1987/627). The activities and tasks of the enterprises are prescribed in legislation concerning each individual enterprise. State-owned enterprises are defined as enterprises. Enterprises owned by municipalities and joint municipal boards are public corporations and are not included in statistics on enterprises. However, they are entered into the Register of Enterprises and Establishments. Enterprises owned by the Region of Åland are not entered into the Register of Enterprises and Establishments.

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A government-subsidised dwelling is a dwelling produced with government ARAVA loans, in which the rent is determined by the cost correlation principle. Most of government-subsidised dwellings are owned by municipalities.

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Pupils at the same stage of education.

Comment.

Comprehensive school is divided into grades 1 to 9.

Additional education, i.e., the 10th grade, is also considered part of comprehensive school.

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Greenhouse gases reported in the greenhouse gas inventory are carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and fluorinated greenhouse gases or F-gases (HFC compounds (hydrofluorocarbons), PFC compounds (perfluorocarbons), sulphur hexafluoride SF6, and nitrogen trifluoride NF3). Other significant greenhouse gases include water vapour, ozone and the so-called CFC and HCFC compounds reported under the Montreal Protocol. Greenhouse gases cause global warming by preventing the heat radiation from the sun from returning into space.

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The greenhouse gas inventory is an annual calculation of the greenhouse gas emissions and removals generated in each country's territory in accordance with the IPCC methodological guidelines and the requirements of international climate conventions, and the results of which are gathered into common Reporting Format Tables and the National Inventory Report. The inventory is submitted annually to the European Commission and to the UNFCCC secretariat. From 2024 on it is delivered in alternate years either as an independent entity or in connection with the biennial report of the Paris Agreement, compiled every two years, to the UNFCCC Secretariat.

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In the greenhouse gas inventory, emissions are reported for the following sectors:

Energy:

energy use of fuels, and evaporative and fugitive emissions related to the production, distribution and consumption of fuels.

Industrial processes and product use:

emissions released in industrial processes, emissions from the use of raw materials and fuels in raw materials use, emissions from the use of F-gases, and emissions from the use of nitrous oxide in industrial and medical applications.

Agriculture:

CH4 emissions from livestock enteric fermentation, CH4 and N2O emissions from manure management, N2O emissions from agricultural soils, N2O emissions from field burning of agricultural residues, and CO2 emissions from liming and urea application

Land use, land-use change and forestry (LULUCF):

CO2 emissions and sinks from the land use categories: forest land, cropland, grassland, wetlands, settlements and other land. Other items reported include emissions from wood products, wildfires and controlled burning, N2O emissions from land converted to cropland, forest fertilisation, drained forest land and peat extraction areas, and CH4 emissions from drained forest land and peat extraction areas.

Waste:

landfills, composting and wastewater treatment

Indirect CO2 emissions from NMVOC and CH4 emissions are also reported for industrial processes and the energy sector.

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Gross capital stock describes the value of producers' assets still in use, valued at prices payable for 'corresponding new' assets regardless of their age and actual condition. Gross capital stock includes the cumulated value of past investments minus the accumulated reduction.

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Financial assets have no impact on total gross debt.

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GDP, gross domestic product at market prices is the final result of the production activity of resident producer units. It can be defined in three ways: as the sum of gross value added of the various institutional sectors or the various industries plus taxes and less subsidies on products; as the sum of final uses of goods and services by resident institutional units (final consumption, gross capital formation, exports minus imports); as the sum of uses in the total economy generation of income account (compensation of employees, taxes on production and imports less subsidies, gross operating surplus and gross mixed income). (ESA 1995 8.89.)

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Gross fixed capital formation consists of resident producers' acquisitions, less disposals, of fixed assets. Fixed assets are tangible or intangible assets produced as outputs from processes of production that are themselves used repeatedly, or continuously, in processes of production for more than one year.

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The gross floor area of a building comprises the floor areas of the different storeys and the area of attic or basement storeys in which there are dwelling or working rooms or other space conforming to the principal intended use of the building.

The gross floor area is the horizontal area enclosed by the outer surfaces of the walls of the storeys or their imagined continuation for openings and decorations on the surface of the outer walls.

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The household's gross income is obtained when current transfers received by the household are added to the household's factor income (wages and salaries, entrepreneurial and property income), but paid current transfers (e.g. taxes and social security contributions) are not deducted.

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In foreign sea transport refers to the income an enterprise receives from the transport of goods and passengers in foreign sea transport, proceeds from sales of on-board restaurants and shops, other income (e.g. those of the purser's office) and income from vessels time chartered abroad. The income (excl. income from time charter) can be received from a domestic or foreign party. Comprises income from both Finnish vessels and from vessels time chartered from abroad.

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Gross investments include all additions, alterations, improvements and renovations which prolong the service life or increase the productive capacity of capital goods. Goods acquired through company restructuring (such as mergers or take-overs) are excluded.
Purchased goods are valued at purchase price, i.e. transport and installation charges, fees, taxes and other costs of ownership transfer are included. Own produced tangible assets are valued at production cost. The value of goods acquired via financial lease corresponds to the market value of the goods if they have been purchased in the year of acquisition.
Investments are recorded when the ownership is transferred to the affiliate.
Gross investments in tangible assets do not include running maintenance costs or the value and overhead expenditure on capital goods used under rental and operational lease contracts. Annual payments for assets used under financial leasing should be excluded.
Gross investments in tangible assets also exclude investments in intangible and financial assets.

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Gross national income represents total primary income receivable by resident institutional units: compensation of employees, taxes on production and imports less subsidies, gross operating surplus, gross mixed income and property income. Gross national income equals GDP minus primary income payable by resident units to non-resident units plus primary income receivable by resident units from the rest of the world. National income is an income concept, which often is more significant if expressed in net terms, i.e. after deduction of the consumption of fixed capital. (ESA 1995 8.94.)

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The reproduction of the population refers to a change of a generation into a new one. Reproduction is measured by gross reproduction rates or net reproduction rates that generally indicate the ratio between the sizes of the daughter's and mother's generations. The fertility and mortality of the mother's generation before the end of the childbearing age is taken into account in the calculation of the net reproduction rate. In the gross reproduction rate this mortality is not taken into consideration. If the net reproduction rate calculated per one woman is less than one, the daughter's generation is smaller than the mother's generation and the mother's generation has not reproduced itself.

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Total gross weight of the locomotive and the carrying stock of a train in tonnes X corresponding train-kilometres.

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Gross weight of the carrying stock of a train in tonnes X corresponding train-kilometres.

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Total of the weight of the vehicle (or combination of vehicles) including its load when stationary and ready for the road declared permissible by the competent authority of the country of registration.

This includes the weight of the driver and the maximum number of persons permitted to be carried.

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Ground heat comprises the heat extracted from a bored well and collection pipework. Heat extracted from water bodies is also included in ground heat in this examination. The electricity consumed by ground heat pumps is not included in ground heat but in electricity consumption of heating.

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Grounds on which a prosecutor may decide not to prosecute include the following:
- The act is not an offence; the act does not fulfil the essential elements of an offence and the law provides no punishment for it.
- No evidence; there is not sufficient evidence of guilt.
- The right to institute criminal proceedings has fallen under the statute of limitations: charges must be brought within the time period specified in the Penal Code.
- No right to institute criminal proceedings: in certain cases the prosecutor's right to institute criminal proceedings is limited.
- The public prosecutor may decide not to prosecute where a penalty more severe than a fine is not anticipated for the offence and the offence is deemed of little significance in view of its detrimental effects and the degree of culpability of the offender manifest in it - Non-prosecution on grounds of insignificance is provided for in chapter 1, section 7, sub-section 1 of the Criminal Procedure Act.
- The public prosecutor may decide not to prosecute where a person under 18 years of age has committed the offence and a penalty more severe than a fine or imprisonment for at most six months is not anticipated for it. Additionally, the offence must be deemed to be the result of lack of judgment or incaution rather than heedlessness of the prohibitions and commands of the law. - Non-prosecution on grounds of young age is provided for in chapter 1, section 7, sub-section 2 of the Criminal Procedure Act.
- Unless an important public or private interest otherwise requires, the public prosecutor may, in addition to the events referred to in section 7, not prosecute where the trial and punishment are deemed unreasonable or pointless. When evaluating such grounds, a settlement reached by the offender and the injured party, some other action of the offender to prevent or remove the effects of the offence, the personal circumstances of the offender, the other consequences of the offence to the offender, the welfare or health care measures undertaken and the other circumstances must be taken into consideration. - Non-prosecution on grounds of reasonability is provided for in chapter 1, section 8, sub-section 1 of the Criminal Procedure Act.
- The public prosecutor may decide not to prosecute if, under the provisions on joint punishment and the consideration of previous punishments in sentencing, the offence would not have an essential effect on the total punishment. - Non-prosecution on grounds joint punishment is provided for in chapter 1, section 8, sub-section 2 of the Criminal Procedure Act.
The prosecutor may decide to not prosecute also on grounds of: chapter 9, section 7, chapter 21, section 17(repealed 2004/712, entry into force 1.10.2004) chapter 35, section 7 and chapter 50, section 7 of the Penal Code.

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In the statistics on special education in comprehensive schools, the grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education were in 2001 to 2010 as follows:

1. Severely delayed development
The grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education are moderate, severe or very severe delay of development. Pupils' syllabuses are always partly or com-pletely individualised.
2. Slightly delayed development
The grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education are slight delay in the pupil's development.
3. Varying degrees of cerebral dysfunction, physical disability or similar
The grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education are the pupil's neurological disability or developmental disorder, such as ADHD, or physical disability, such as the CP syndrome.
4. Emotional disturbance or social maladjustment
The grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education are the pupil's emo-tional disturbance or social maladjustment.
5. Learning difficulties related to autism or the Asperger's syndrome
The grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education are the pupil's autism or Asperger's syndrome.
6. Learning difficulties caused by impaired linguistic development (dysphasia)
The grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education are the pupil's im-paired linguistic development (dysphasia).
7. Visual impairment
The grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education are the pupil's visual impairment.
8. Hearing impairment
The grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education are the pupil's hear-ing impairment.
9. Other than reasons listed above
The grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education are some other reasons not listed above.

The grounds for special education were based on the decision concerning acceptance or transfer to special education.

In the statistics on special education in vocational education, the grounds for special education were in 1999 to 2003 as follows:

1. Auditory impairment
2. Visual impairment
3. Muscular-skeletal impairment
4. Chronic illness
5. Delayed development
6. Severe delay of development
7. Emotional disturbance, and
8. Other reason.

In the statistics on special education in vocational education, the grounds for special education are starting from 2004 as follows:

01. Perception, attention and concentration difficulty, such as AD/HD or ADD
02. Linguistic difficulties, such as severe reading difficulty, dysphasia, dyslexia
03. Interactive and behavioural disorders, such a social maladjustment
04.Slightly delayed development, student has extensive learning difficulties
05. Severely delayed development, medium or severe mental handicap
06. Chronic psychological illnesses, mental health problems, rehabilitating drug abusers
07. Chronic somatic chronic illnesses, such as allergy, asthma, diabetes, epilepsy, cancer
08. Learning difficulties related to autism or the Asperger's syndrome
09. Difficulties of mobility and motoric functions, such as musculo-skeletal disor-ders, the CP syndrome, dwarfism
10. Auditory impairment
11. Visual impairment
12. Other reason necessitating special teaching.

The grounds for acceptance or transfer to special education are determined by the primary reason for needing special education.

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Group family day care premises are an early childhood education and care site where early childhood education and care is provided by personnel meeting statutory qualification requirements in premises approved for the purpose where the number of children present at any one time does not exceed the maximum permitted under the law. In group family day care premises, early childhood education and care is the responsibility of at least two family day care childminders or other persons with early childhood education and care qualifications. Group family day care is family-based day care where the children are jointly looked after by two or three family day care childminders

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The group head of an enterprise group is an enterprise that has at least one subsidiary company and in which no company holds more than 50 per cent of voting rights.

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In the Enterprise Group Register, group nationality is determined by the country of residence of the Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO). If the UBO of an enterprise group is resident in Finland the group's nationality is Finnish.

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In the Enterprise Group Register, group relationship describes the relationship between a resident group head and an enterprise belonging to the group. Cf. Direct relationship.

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The name of growth accounting method comes from that annual changes in value added are broken into growth components, whereby it is possible to examine from which factors growth has derived. Let’s assume that from year t to year t-1, value added has grown by five per cent (logarithmic % changes). This growth can be broken into components: the share of growth caused by the growth in the amount of capital, the share due to growth in labour input and the share resulting from improved multi-factor productivity. The components are summed to the change in value added, that is, if in the example above we assume that the effect of capital is 0.7 per cent and that of labour force 1.3 per cent, the effect of multi-factor productivity is three per cent.
Primary inputs – capital and labour – can be further broken into sub-items. In productivity calculations the contributions have been separately calculated for ICT and RD assets, machinery and equipment, residential buildings and other capital resources. The effects of hours worked and the contribution of labour composition are separated from labour input.
The most precise productivity survey calculations are made for 63 industries. Value added, labour productivity, contribution of capital and labour force to productivity and multifactor productivity are calculated for each industry. After this, industry-specific data are aggregated with value added weights to less detailed levels and afterwards to the level of the whole economy.

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Growth reviews are analyses that provide information in the form of figures, tables and written descriptions about the breakdown of growth in, say, turnover, sum of wages and salaries or number of employees between enterprises. Growth reviews can be used to ascertain how much small enterprises or local enterprises only operating in their own area influence growth in their respective industry or whether the growth originates from just a few strongly expanding enterprises. The share of growing enterprises of all enterprises in the industry can be examined with growth reviews.

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