Definition: Change in inventories

Category: Purchasing power parities

The acquisition, less disposals, of stocks of raw materials, semi-finished goods and finished goods that are held by producer units prior to their being further processed or sold or otherwise used. Inventories also cover all raw materials and goods stored by government as strategic reserves. Semi-finished goods include work-in-progress - that is, goods and services that are only partially completed and whose production process will be continued by the same producer in a period following the accounting period. Work-in-progress is particularly important for production processes with long gestation periods, such as the construction of large-scale civil engineering works, the manufacture of aeroplanes and ships, and reforestation. Also covered by work-in-progress is the natural growth prior to harvest of agricultural crops and the natural growth in livestock raised for slaughter. http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/ramon/statmanuals/files/KS-BE-06-002-EN.pdf European Union, Regulation (EC) No 1445/2007 establishing rules for the provision of basic information on PPPs, Official Journal of the European Union No L 336, 20.12.2007, p. 1 - 24