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Mercantile Companies Statistic

• 1Contact
  • 1.1Contact organisation
    National Statistics Institute of Spain
    
  • 1.5Contact mail address

    Avenida de Manoteras 50-52 - 28050 Madrid

    
    
• 2Metadata update
  • 2.1Metadata last certified
    27/02/2024
  • 2.2Metadata last posted
    09/03/2023
  • 2.3Metadata last update
    27/02/2024
• 3Statistical presentation
  • 3.1Data description

    The objective is to measure society demographics. These statistics offer monthly information on the companies created, the companies dissolved and those in which capital modifications have occurred. Data is obtained by province, Autonomous Community and the national total, using the data supplied by the Central Mercantile Register, which collects information from the entire national territory (country), including Ceuta and Melilla.

  • 3.2Classification system
    • Causa de disolución
      1   Voluntaria
      2   Por fusión
      O   Otras causas
        .
    • Comunidades y Ciudades Autónomas
      01   Andalucía
      02   Aragón
      03   Asturias, Principado de
      04   Balears, Illes
      05   Canarias
      06   Cantabria
      07   Castilla y León
      08   Castilla - La Mancha
      09   Cataluña
      10   Comunitat Valenciana
      11   Extremadura
      12   Galicia
      13   Madrid, Comunidad de
      14   Murcia, Región de
      15   Navarra, Comunidad Foral de
      16   País Vasco
      17   Rioja, La
      18   Ceuta
      19   Melilla
    • Estados de las sociedades
      1   Constituidas
      2   Aumento de capital (en miles de euros)
      3   Emisión de Obligaciones
      4   Reducen Capital
      5   Disueltas
    • Provincias
      02   Albacete
      03   Alicante/Alacant
      04   Almería
      01   Araba/Álava
      33   Asturias
      05   Ávila
      06   Badajoz
      07   Balears, Illes
      08   Barcelona
      48   Bizkaia
      09   Burgos
      10   Cáceres
      11   Cádiz
      39   Cantabria
      12   Castellón/Castelló
      13   Ciudad Real
      14   Córdoba
      15   Coruña, A
      16   Cuenca
      20   Gipuzkoa
      17   Girona
      18   Granada
      19   Guadalajara
      21   Huelva
      22   Huesca
      23   Jaén
      24   León
      25   Lleida
      27   Lugo
      28   Madrid
      29   Málaga
      30   Murcia
      31   Navarra
      32   Ourense
      34   Palencia
      35   Palmas, Las
      36   Pontevedra
      26   Rioja, La
      37   Salamanca
      38   Santa Cruz de Tenerife
      40   Segovia
      41   Sevilla
      42   Soria
      43   Tarragona
      44   Teruel
      45   Toledo
      46   Valencia/València
      47   Valladolid
      49   Zamora
      50   Zaragoza
      51   Ceuta
      52   Melilla
  • 3.3Sector coverage

    The target population of study is the group of Provincial Land Registries.

  • 3.4Statistical concepts and definitions
    • Bond issue
      The company may issue numbered series of bonds or other shares that recognise or create a debt, as long as the total amount of the issues are not greater than the corporate paid-up capital plus the reserves that appear in the latest approved balance and the accounts regulating and updating the balances, when these have been approved by the Ministry of Economy and Competitivity.
      In the registration of the issue of bonds in the mercantile register, the following appear:
      - the denomination of the institution
      - total amount of the issue
      - the nominal value as well as interest, maturities, premiums and batches of investigations were there to be any
    • Branches or secondary establishments
      A branch is understood to be any secondary establishment with permanent representation and certain autonomy of management by means of which the company's activities are carried out totally or partially.
      Its registration in the mercantile register will be in the province corresponding to the domicile of the branch. Among other things, the domicile and economic activity should be recorded.
      When branches belong to a foreign company, they will also be registered in the mercantile register corresponding to the place of their domicile.
      This statistic does not collect information on the branches of individual businesspersons.
    • Central mercantile register
      The Central Mercantile Register (CMR) has among others, the following functions:
      -The ordering, handling and publication, merely for informative purposes, of the data received from the provincial mercantile registers
      -Archiving and publication of the denominations of legal companies and institutions
      -The publication of the official mercantile register bulletin (MRB) under the terms established in this regulation.
      -The register relating to companies and institutions that have moved their domicile abroad without losing Spanish nationality
    • Company
      The company is the smallest combination of legal units that is an organizational unit producing goods or
      services, which benefits from a certain degree of autonomy in decision-making, especially for the
      allocation of its current resources. A company carries out one or more activities at one or more
      locations. A company may be a sole legal unit.
    • Constituted companies
      Registration in the mercantile register is obligatory. However, the act of registration may be simultaneous at the start of mercantile operations or conversely, subsequent to this.
    • Cooperative company
      Company which, with variable capital and a democratic structure and management, associate, in the form of an open membership with voluntary delisting, persons who have common socio-economic interests or needs, who carry out corporate activities for the satisfaction of the latter and for the benefit of the cooperative. The economic results are imputed to partners once cooperative funds have been dealt with, depending on the cooperative activity that is carried out.
      The corporate domicile needs to include the words "Sociedad Cooperativa" or its abbreviation "S. Coop.".
      The number of partners is unlimited and the responsibility of these for corporate debts is that set out in the statutes.
      The law does not require minimal capital for the constitution of cooperatives, it is the statutes themselves which determines this.
      For the acquisition of legal personality registration in the cooperative companies register and public deed is required.
    • Corporate capital
      Corporate capital is determined in the deed of constitution. Its contribution is necessary as a real guarantee for creditors.
      When the company is registered the corporate capital figure should be determined in the company statutes, the minimum being established by law for determined companies.
      When applicable, the portion of the non paid up value is also recorded in the statutes.
      In the mercantile companies statistic and as of January 1994, apart from registered capital, paid up capital is also published. This is equal to subscribed capital or a portion of it, depending on whether total or partial payment is obligatory, and according to the type of company.
      For special companies and other institutions, it has to be borne in mind that for registration in the mercantile register the law establishes a series of compulsory circumstances, as occurs for mercantile companies, among them the cash paid up. The quantity contributed at registration depends on the type of company and may be:
      - Minimum capital
      - Variable capital
      - Corporate capital
      - Income
      - Provisions fund
      - Mutual fund, etc.
      In this statistic it has been opted to unify the different cash payments and name them capital.
    • Dissolution by merger
      Disappearance of the company in order to join another.
    • Dissolution of companies
      Within this section, only the number of dissolved companies and the cause of their dissolution is covered: whether this is voluntary, by merger or for another reason. In others judicial dissolutions, by division and other causes of dissolution, are grouped together.
    • Economic interest group
      Associative and corporate entity, made up of corporate, professional and other legally determined subjects as instruments of their cooperation and whose debts are borne by the partners personally and jointly and severally between themselves, and with subsidiarity with respect to the Economic Interest Group (A.I.E.).
      Economic Interest Groups are non-profit. Their objective is limited to an auxiliary economic activity carried out by their partners.
      The number of partners is at least two.
      In order to acquire legal personality a public deed and registration in the mercantile register is necessary.
    • Group company
      Company in which all the shareholders as a group and under a corporate name, undertake to participate in the proportion established, with the same rights and obligations, responding in a subsidiary, personal, joint and several manner and without limits with all their assets for the results of corporate transactions.
      The group company functions under a corporate name which will be made up of the name of all its partners, some of them or just one of them. The words "and company" should be added in the latter two cases.
      For the constitution of the company a minimum of two partners is necessary but there is no legal maximum.
      The company administration may be assumed by all the partners except by express agreement to the contrary in favour of one or some of them.
      For the acquisition of personality the following are necessary:
      -Public deed 6
      -registration in the Mercantile Register
      -census declaration and obtaining a tax identification number
      With respect to capital, there is no legal minimum or maximum.
    • Incorporated Partnership
      Mercantile company made up of the contributions of group and capital partners of limited partnership partners.
      The corporate name should contain the name of all, some or just one of the group partners or an objective denomination with the necessary indication of "Sociedad Comanditaria por Acciones" or its abbreviation "S. Com. Por A.".
      For the constitution of a company it is necessary to have at least three partners, one of which has to be group but there is no legal maximum limit.
      The responsibility of the group partner is unlimited and joint and several, whilst the limited partnership partner is limited to the economic contribution made.
      For the acquisition of personality a public deed, registry registration, census declaration and obtaining of a tax identification number is needed.
      With respect to corporate capital, the legal minimum is 60,101€.
    • Increase in capital
      The increase in corporate capital may be carried out by issuing new shares or by increasing the nominal value of pre-existing ones.
      In the registration of the increase in capital, apart from the general details, the following appear:
      - the amount of the increase
      - the identification of the new shares or the increase in nominal value experienced by the older shares
      - the new wording of statutes articles on capital and shares
    • Individual businessperson
      The trade code defines the trader as the person who has the legal capacity to practice trade and does so habitually.
      Bearing in mind that apart from commercial activities, industrial, banking and transport activities, etc may also be carried out. the business person may be de-fined as a physical person who organises the necessary elements for the production of goods and services. Liberal professionals are excluded from this definition (lawyers, doctors, etc.).
      Their registration in the mercantile register is obligatory. The following has to be recorded:
      - their and their company's identification
      - the issuing of bonds in other negotiable shares (when this is carried out)
      - the suspension of payments and bankruptcy (if this occurs)
      - the objective of their company
      - the domicile of their establishment
    • Investment funds
      Investment funds are savings instruments. It is a heritage that is formed by the contributions of a group of people who invest their capital in search for yield. This fund collects the money contributed by all participants, for an entity to be responsible for its management and administration.
    • Limited partnership
      Mercantile company made up of the contributions of group and capital partners of limited partnership partners. This may be of two types:
      -Simple Limited Partnership
      - Incorporated Partnership
    • Mercantile companies
      The company form by which two or more persons are obliged to place common goods or industry in a fund in order to obtain profit will be mercantile, whatever its type, provided it is constituted in agreement with trade code provisions. Once the mercantile company has been constituted, it will have legal personality in all its acts and contracts.
      By general rule mercantile companies are constructed by adopting some of the following forms.
      -group company
      -simple limited partnership or incorporated partnership
      -public limited company
      -private limited company
    • Mercantile register
      The mercantile register is a publication instrument and its mission is to provide relevant data for mercantile traffic to the public. Among other functions, the mercantile register is used to register businesspersons and other subjects established by Law and the Regulation.
      The Mercantile Registers are established in all provincial capitals, as well as in the cities of Ceuta and Melilla.
    • Money market mutual funds (FIAMM)
      It is income belonging to numerous investors whose property right is a shareholding certificate. Its objective is to invest in money market assets. Their denomination will be followed by the initials F.I.A.M.M. and its minimum capital at the time of constitution is 9,015,181.00 €.
    • Paying up of passive dividends
      When the registered capital is not paid up completely, it is indicated in the deed of constitution or increase in corporate capital if the payments pending will be made in cash or by means of non-monetary contributions.
      In the case of payments pending having to be made in cash, the form and maximum period during which passive dividends have to be met will be determined.
    • Pension funds
      Pension funds are assets with legal personality that belong to a group of participants, whose property right is justified by means of holding certificates. Pension funds are constituted with the exclusive object of complying with pensions plans. Their constitution should be registered in the mercantile register at the domicile of the managing company and its denomination will be followed by the initials F.P.
    • Private limited company
      Capitalist mercantile company made up of one or more persons in which capital is integrated by the contributions of partners and divided into equal parts called holdings that confer upon their holder the status of partner, the latter not being responsible for corporate debts.
      The corporate name is free. It is not possible to adopt a corporate name which is identical to a pre-existing one and this needs to include the expression "Sociedad Limitada" or its abbreviation "S.R.L." o "S.L."
      As for the number of partners, there has to be at least a minimum of one partner and a maximum of 50. The responsibility of partners for corporate debts with regards to third parties is limited to contributions made or committed but not yet made.
      For the acquisition of legal personality a public deed, registry registration, census declaration and obtaining of a tax identification number is needed.
      Capital cannot be less than 3,005.00 €, and it must be fully paid up when the company is constituted.
    • Province ( Article 141.1 of the Spanish Constitution)
      The province is a local institution with its own legal status, determined by grouping municipalities and dividing territories in order to fulfil State activities. Any alteration in the provincial limits is to be approved by the General Courts by means of constitutional law.
    • Public limited company
      Capitalist mercantile company made up of one or more persons in which capital is integrated by the contributions of partners and divided into shares that confer upon their holder the status of partner, limiting the responsibility of these to their corporate contribution.
      The corporate name is free. It is not possible to adopt a corporate name identical to a pre-existing one and this needs to include the expression "Sociedad Anónima" or its abbreviation "S.A."
      For the constitution of a company at least one partner is required. The responsibility of partners for corporate debts with regards to third parties is limited to contributions made or committed but not yet made.
      For the acquisition of legal personality a public deed, registry registration, census declaration and obtaining of a tax identification number is needed.
      Capital cannot be less than 60,101.00 €, and at least a quarter (25%) of the nominal value of each share must be fully subscribed and paid up when the company is constituted. The non paid up portion of the share is called passive dividend.
    • Reciprocal guarantee company
      Reciprocal Guarantee Company (R.G.C.) is a financial institution made up of small and medium sized companies (SMEs) with the objective of facilitating their access to credit and improve their general financing conditions.
      The number of partners is at least 150 and their responsibility is limited.
      Corporate capital is at least 180,303.00 € and not more than 5,409,108.00 €.
    • Reduction of capital
      The reduction of capital may have the following objectives:
      - the return of contributions
      - the cancellation of passive dividends
      - the constitution or increase of voluntary reserves
      - the reestablishment of the balance between capital and company income reduced as a result of losses
      - the constitution or increase in legal reserves
      - the reduction may be carried out by means of the reduction of the nominal value of the shares, their amortisation or their being grouped to trade them.
    • Registration date
      The entry date of the mercantile register presentation is considered as the registra-tion date.
      The reference that is used in this statistic is specifically the registration date, without bearing in mind the commencement date of transactions nor the publication date in the S.M.R.B.
    • Savings banks
      Savings banks are companies with a foundational structure and of a private legal nature, which carry out a banking activity. The administrative authorisation for its constitution is similar to that of the banks.
      A minimum provisional fund is necessary that depends on the volume of the population of the municipalities where they operate.
      These are currently associated in the Spanish Confederation of Savings Banks. A portion of their profits is dedicated to corporate activities (libraries, study grants, etc.).
    • Securities fund
      Public limited company whose objective is the acquisition, tenancy, enjoyment, administration and disposal of securities and other financial assets with the objective of compensating risks and performances of other companies without having a majority holding.
      The number of partners is not less than what is needed for the admission of shares for official stock market listing. Their responsibility is limited.
      For the acquisition of legal personality a public deed, registration in the Mercantile Register and National Stock Market Commission register, authorisation from the Ministry of Economy and Competitivity, census declaration and obtaining a tax identification number is required.
      The corporate capital of the company may not be less than 1,202,024.00 €.
    • Securities funds (FIM)
      It is income belonging to numerous investors whose property right is a shareholding certificate. Its objective is to invest in various shares in the same manner as securities funds investment companies.
      Its minimum capital for foundation is 3,005.060.00 € and the denomination of the fund should be preceded by the initials F.I.M.
    • Simple Limited Partnership
      Mercantile company made up of the contributions of group and capital partners of limited partnership partners.
      The corporate name should contain the name of all group partners or some of them. In the latter case the words "y Compañía" and in both cases "Sociedad en Comandita" should be added.
      For the constitution of a company it is necessary to have at least two partners, one of which has to be group but there is no legal maximum limit.
      The responsibility of the group partner is unlimited and joint and several, whilst the partnership partner is limited to the economic contribution made.
      For the acquisition of personality a public deed, registration in the register, census declaration and obtaining of a tax identification number is necessary.
      With respect to corporate capital, there is no legal minimum
    • Temporary union of companies
      This is a collaboration system between businesspersons for a determined or indetermined period of time for the execution of work, service or supply.
      They lack their own legal personality.
      Once the execution of the work has concluded, the union is extinguished. This cannot exceed a period of ten years.
    • Voluntary dissolution
      Dissolution of the company, due to the arrangement of the partners.
    • Workforce Owned Public Limited Company
      Public limited companies in which most of the social capital is owned by those workers who provide paid services in them, personally and directly, and whose labour relationship is permanent.
    • Worned-owned company
      Private or public limited company in which more than 50% of the corporate capital is the property of the employees. No partner may have more than a third except worker-owned companies held by the state, autonomous communities, local institutions or public companies.
      The corporate name should include the expression "Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada Laboral¿ or "Sociedad Anónima Laboral", or its abbreviation "S.L.L.". or "S.A.L.".
      The minimum number of partners is three. No partner may have more than one third of the corporate capital and two of them must be employees. The responsibility of partners is limited to the contributions.
      For the acquisition of legal personality a public deed, registration in the mercantile register and administrative register of worker-owned companies, census declaration and obtaining a tax identification number is required.
      Capital cannot be less than 3.005,00 €, if it is a worker-owned private limited company. In the case of a worker-owned public limited company this can-not be less than 60,101.00 €.
  • 3.5Statistical unit

    The statistical unit is the number, and the capital subscribed and paid of the companies created, the number of companies that have modified their capital and the number of companies dissolved, recorded in the mercantile registers during the reference month.

  • 3.6Statistical population

    The target population of study is the group of Land Registries.

  • 3.7Reference area

    The geographical scope of these statistics encompasses the entire national territory.

  • 3.8Time coverage

    These statistics have a monthly frequency.

  • 3.9Base period

    Due to the mercantile reform in 1989, the statistics have experienced methodological and structural changes. However, measures have been taken to maintain the main historical series and to improve their publication, with new information: special companies and company offices.
    Starting with the INE figures from January 1994, the publication of the paid capital began, in addition to the subscribed capital already collected for the mercantile companies constituted and for those increasing their capital; the payments of capital calls are also tabulated.

• 4Unit of measure
  • 4.1Unit of measure
• 5Reference period
  • 5.1Reference period

    The reference period is the calendar month.

    Data referred to the period: Mensual A: 2024 MES: 01

• 6Institutional mandate
  • 6.1Legal acts and other agreements

    The compilation and dissemination of the data are governed by the Statistical Law No. 12/1989 "Public Statistical Function" of May 9, 1989, and Law No. 4/1990 of June 29 on “National Budget of State for the year 1990" amended by Law No. 13/1996 "Fiscal, administrative and social measures" of December 30, 1996, makes compulsory all statistics included in the National Statistics Plan. The National Statistical Plan 2009-2012 was approved by the Royal Decree 1663/2008. It contains the statistics that must be developed in the four year period by the State General Administration's services or any other entity dependent on it. All statistics included in the National Statistics Plan are statistics for state purposes and are obligatory. The National Statistics Plan 2021-2024, approved by Royal Decree 1110/2020, of 15  December, is the Plan currently implemented. This statistical operation has governmental purposes, and it is included in the National Statistics Plan 2021-2024. (Statistics of the State Administration).

    
    

    The Mercantile Company Statistics (MC) was created by the Order dated 30 September 1938. The Law on the Reform and Adaptation of Mercantile Legislation for community directives, the Legislative Royal Decree of 22 December 1989, regarding the recast text of the Law on Public Limited Companies, and the subsequent Mercantile Register Regulation, affected the operative and conceptual part of these statistics as of January 1990.
    

  • 6.2Data sharing
    The exchanges of information needed to elaborate statistics between the INE and the rest of the State statistical offices (Ministerial Departments, independent bodies and administrative bodies depending on the State General Administration), or between these offices and the Autonomic statistical offices, are regulated in the LFEP (Law of the Public Statistic Function). This law also regulates the mechanisms of statistical coordination, and concludes cooperation agreements between the different offices when necessary.
    

    The data from the statistics is sent, corresponding to the Autonomous Community requesting it.

• 7Confidentiality
  • 7.1Confidentiality - policy

    The Statistical Law No. 12/1989 specifies that the INE cannot publish, or make otherwise available, individual data or statistics that would enable the identification of data for any individual person or entity. Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 on European statistics stipulates the need to establish common principles and guidelines ensuring the confidentiality of data used for the production of European statistics and the access to those confidential data with due account for technical developments and the requirements of users in a democratic society

    
    
  • 7.2Confidentiality - data treatment
    INE provides information on the protection of confidentiality at all stages of the statistical process: INE questionnaires for the operations in the national statistical plan include a legal clause protecting data under statistical confidentiality. Notices prior to data collection announcing a statistical operation notify respondents that data are subject to statistical confidentiality at all stages. For data processing, INE employees have available the INE data protection handbook, which specifies the steps that should be taken at each stage of processing to ensure reporting units' individual data are protected. The microdata files provided to users are anonymised.
    

    For the customised requests, the data is anonymised, that is, it is supplied without providing the identifying variables of the registerable record.

• 8Release policy
  • 8.1Release calendar

    The advance release calendar that shows the precise release dates for the coming year is disseminated in the last quarter of each year.

    
    
  • 8.2Release calendar access

    The calendar is disseminated on the INEs Internet website (Publications Calendar)

    
    
  • 8.3User access

    The data are released simultaneously according to the advance release calendar to all interested parties by issuing the press release. At the same time, the data are posted on the INE's Internet website (www.ine.es/en) almost immediately after the press release is issued. Also some predefined tailor-made requests are sent to registered users. Some users could receive partial information under embargo as it is publicly described in the European Statistics Code of Practice

    
    
• 9Frequency of dissemination
  • 9.1Frequency of dissemination

    The statistics are disseminated monthly. The final data for the reference month the previous year is also published monthly.

• 10Accessibility and clarity
  • 10.1News release

    The results of the statistical operations are normally disseminated by using press releases that can be accessed via both the corresponding menu and the Press Releases Section in the web

    
    
  • 10.2Publications

    The results of the statistics are disseminated via the INE website:
    www.ine.es en https://www.ine.es/dyngs/INEbase/en/operacion.htm?c=Estadistica_C&cid=1254736177026&menu=ultiDatos&idp=1254735576606, and some results are included in publications such as the Statistical Yearbook, INE Figures, etc.

  • 10.3On-line database

    INEbase is the system the INE uses to store statistical information on the Internet. It contains all the information the INE produces in electronic formats. The primary organisation of the information follows the theme-based classification of the Inventory of Statistical Operations of the State General Administration . The basic unit of INEbase is the statistical operation, defined as the set of activities that lead to obtaining statistical results on a determined sector or subject based on the individually collected data. Also included in the scope of this definition are synthesis preparation.

    
    

    Access to tables and time series in Internet a tables and time series in www.ine.es/en/, in INEbase, within the "Financial and monetary statistics" section https://www.ine.es/dyngs/INEbase/en/operacion.htm?c=Estadistica_C&cid=1254736177026&menu=ultiDatos&idp=1254735576606

  • 10.4Micro-data access
    A lot of statistical operations disseminate public domain anonymized files, available free of charge for downloading in the INE website Microdata Section
    

    Users may not access the microdata.

  • 10.5Other

    There is the option of requesting customised information from the INE Customer Service Area. Limitations to confidentiality or precision are borne in mind at the time of processing said requests. See: https://www.ine.es/ss/Satellite?L=en_GB&c=Page&cid=1254735638180&p=1254735638180&pagename=ProductosYServicios%2FPYSLayout

  • 10.6Documentation on methodology

    A detailed description may be viewed at: https://www.ine.es/en/daco/daco43/metodologia_sm_en.pdf

  • 10.7Quality documentation

    Fields 10.6 to 17 constitute the user-oriented quality report of this operation.

• 11Quality management
  • 11.1Quality assurance

    Quality assurance framework for the INE statistics is based on the ESSCoP, the European Statistics Code of Practice made by EUROSTAT. The ESSCoP is made up of 16 principles, gathered in three areas: Institutional Environment, Processes and Products. Each principle is associated with some indicators which make possible to measure it. In order to evaluate quality, EUROSTAT provides different tools: the indicators mentioned above, Self-assessment based on the DESAP model, peer review, user satisfaction surveys and other proceedings for evaluation.

    
    

    Each month, the data for compiling the Mercantile Company Statistics, submitted to the INE by the Central Mercantile Register, is subjected to a series of filtering phases:
    - Lists are made of those companies with high or very low capital, in order to confirm, with the provincial mercantile registers, whether that information is correct.
    - All of the companies appearing encoded with a social form of "Other" are checked, in order to seek their correct social form (P.L.C., L.T.D., or as pertinent).

  • 11.2Quality assessment

    The Mercantile Company Statistics is a high-quality statistical operation that meets all criteria of coherence, comparability, precision and timeliness.

    It highlights the low rate of non-response and the use of administrative records, which reduces the cost and the burden on informants.

• 12Relevance
  • 12.1User needs

    Statistics users include:
    - Ministries and other public bodies, answers to parliamentary requests.
    - Territorial administrations (Autonomous Communities, municipal councils, etc.), for dissemination of their territorial data.
    - Companies and non-profit institutions.
    Each one of these users have different needs according to the purpose and use they will make of the information they require.

  • 12.2User satisfaction

    The INE has carried out general user satisfaction surveys in 2007, 2010, 2013,  2016 and 2019 and it plans to continue doing so every three years. The purpose of these surveys is to find out what users think about the quality of the information of the INE statistics and the extent to which their needs of information are covered. In addition, additional surveys are carried out in order to acknowledge better other fields such as dissemination of the information, quality of some publications...

    On the INE website, in its section Methods and Projects / Quality and Code of Practice / INE quality management / User surveys are available surveys conducted to date.(Click  next link)

     

    
    

    The specific needs of users, which are not covered with the information provided by these statistics, are taken into account whenever customised requests are carried out, and to the extent possible, are incorporated in the statistics when the methodology is updated.

  • 12.3Completeness

    Though there is no regulation establishing the information to be provided, the Mercantile Company Statistics meet most user needs; regarding unmet needs, these are resolved via customised requests.

    Regarding what is established in the National Statistical Plan, statistics provide 100% of the information requested.

    R1=100%

• 13Accuracy and reliability
  • 13.1Overall accuracy

    The procedure for collection, coverage control, error filtering and validation of the information allow obtaining a high degree of reliability in the statistics.

  • 13.2Sampling error

    There is no sampling in the statistics.

  • 13.3Non-sampling error

    The possible extraneous errors to the sampling that can occur, are due to erroneous annotations realized by the mercantile registers, which are compared with the BORME and they are corrected in the purification process.

    No imputation is made, possible errors in the information received are corrected, due to errors in the entries made by the provincial trade registers; therefore the calculation of indicators A4, A5 and A7 is not appropriate.

• 14Timeliness and punctuality
  • 14.1Timeliness

    The data from the statistics is published some 45 days following the reference month of the information.

    TP1=45 days

    TP2=13 months

  • 14.2Punctuality

    The dissemination of the data is carried out in accordance with the structural statistics availability calendar that the INE compiles and publishes for each year.

• 15Coherence and Comparability
  • 15.1Comparability - geographical

    These statistics, in all of their phases, are processed in the same way for the entire territory. In this way, the results are perfectly comparable for any geographical breakdown.

  • 15.2Comparability - over time

    The data from the statistics from 1995 to 2022 is available in www.ine.es/en/, and it is final. The months from 2023 published to date are all provisional.

    CC2=349 meses

  • 15.3Coherence - cross domain

    The Mercantile Company Statistics follow the same trend as the Company Statistics compiled by the Central Mercantile Register.

  • 15.4Coherence - internal

    The coherence is the result of a fundamental matter, both in the planning of the statistics, and in all of its preparation process. The results have complete internal coherence, as they are based on the same set of data, and are calculated using the same estimation methods.

• 16Cost and burden
  • 16.1Cost and burden

    The estimation of the budgetary credit necessary to finance  the Mercantile Companies Statistics in the Annual Program 2024 comes to a total of 55.64 thousand euros.

• 17Data revision
  • 17.1Data revision - policy

    The INE of Spain has a policy which regulates the basic aspects of statistical data revision, seeking to ensure process transparency and product quality. This policy is laid out in the document approved by the INE board of directors on 13 March of 2015, which is available on the INE website, in the section "Methods and projects/Quality and Code of Practice/INE’s Quality management/INE’s Revision policy" (link).

    This general policy sets the criteria that the different type of revisions should follow:  routine revision- it is the case of statistics whose production process includes regular revisions-; more extensive revision- when methodological or basic reference source changes take place-; and exceptional revision- for instance, when an error appears in a published statistic-.

    
    

    For some statistics, in which users particularly value having data as soon as possible, the initial estimates are published with the expectation that they might be revised and updated when new data is available. This is characteristic of short-term statistics, such as the monthly or quarterly statistics.

  • 17.2Data revision - practice

    The provisional data for the statistics is disseminated monthly. 15 days prior to the publication for the reference month, the final item of data, revised, from that month the previous year is published.

    MAR and RMAR are calculated with the provisional/final data of the variable Trading Companies Constituted for the twelve months of 2022.

    A6-MAR=4,08

    A6-RMAR=0,05%

• 18Statistical processing
  • 18.1Source data

    All of the information regarding the registerable acts of the companies is obtained from the territorial mercantile registers, which each month send the Central Mercantile Register all the company movements. The Central Mercantile Register is the body that sends the INE the information necessary for compiling the statistics, and it does so via computer media.

  • 18.2Frequency of data collection

    The data is received monthly.

  • 18.3Data collection

    The Central Mercantile Register sends the data in an encrypted file via e-mail, to the Subdirectorate General for Information and Communication Technologies.

  • 18.4Data validation

    The data file submitted by the Central Mercantile Register is subjected to a validation phase (verification) for those companies constituted, or with modifications in capital, whose capital is anomalous. Confirmation of this information is requested of the provincial mercantile registers. A file is also created with those companies that have not been encoded according to their legal form, in order to assign them a code.

  • 18.5Data compilation

    Once the validation processes are complete, tabulation begins for the publication of the press release.

  • 18.6Adjustment

    No adjustments are made.

• 19Comment
  • 19.1Comment