Services turnover index overview

Data extracted in March 2024.

Planned article update: March 2025.

Highlights

EU and EA, turnover in services (STS), monthly data, seasonally and calendar adjusted (2021=100)
Source: Eurostat (sts_setu_q)

This article provides an overview of the development of the services turnover indicator in the European Union (EU), the euro area and the European Union Member States over recent years, and describes how it is calculated.

The index of turnover in (other) services is a business cycle indicator which measures the development of turnover in the European service industries, with the exception of public and financial services and services in retail and wholesale trade for which a separate indicator exists. The data on services presented here encompass mainly – but not only – services consumed by businesses, therefore they are often referred to as "business services". In addition to the turnover indicator there also exists a monthly production index of services which represents turnover data corrected for price developments.

With Regulation (EU) No 2019/2152 (European Business Statistics Regulation, EBSR), which took effect in 2021, the data frequency for service turnover changed from quarterly to monthly. This is the first time that monthly turnover data are presented.

Full article

Services turnover: development since 2015

Following the financial and economic crises in 2000 and 2009, the turnover of European service industries increased rather steadily. During the Covid-19 crisis, which began in early 2020, this development changed dramatically. Between February and April 2020 services turnover in the EU and in the euro area dropped by around 18 %. In May and June 2020 a recovery process set in. However it took over a year before the pre-crisis turnover levels were regained.

Figure 1: EU, EA, turnover in services (STS), monthly data, seasonally and calendar adjusted (2021=100)
Source: Eurostat (sts_setu_q)

Short-term statistics cover – with some exceptions – the following six service industries according to NACE Rev. 2 (NACE code in brackets): transportation and storage (H), accommodation and food services (I), information and communication services (J), real estate services (L), professional, scientific and technical activities (M). The development of the turnover for these main service activities is shown in Figure 2. STS also covers administrative and support services (N). For this industry currently no monthly data with the base year 2021 (see below) are available.

During the Covid-19 crisis, food and accommodation services were hit particularly hard. Between February and April 2020, the turnover generated by these service industries was reduced by more than 80 %. Moreover the graph shows that hotel and restaurant services were, unlike other service industries, also severely hit by the containment measures in the winter of 2021.

Transportation and storage services also declined strongly during the pandemic. In 2021 and the first half of 2022 these industries developed rather positively. Starting in September 2022 these services are however reclining, between August 2022 and December 2023 they recorded a negative rate of change of more than 8 %.

Figure 2: EU, turnover in main service industries, monthly data, seasonally and calendar adjusted, (2021=100)
Source: Eurostat (sts_setu_q)

Table 1 provides a breakdown of the development (annual rates of change) of the service turnover in the Member States of the EU. The effects of the Covid-19 crisis are clearly visible for the year 2020 when almost all countries for which data are available registered massive declines in services turnover (the only exception being Luxembourg).

The current analysis based on data with the new base year (=100). For the time being no complete data set is available for all countries.

Table 1: Annual rates of change for the turnover in services (%), 2015 - 2023 calendar adjusted data
Source: Eurostat (sts_setu_a)

Source data for tables and graphs

STS services turnover 2024 update: tables and figures

Data sources

Data sources, aggregation and availability

The definition of turnover is rather straightforward. It comprises basically what is invoiced by the seller. Rebates and price deductions are taken into account as well as special charges that the customer might have to pay. Turnover does not include VAT or similar deductible taxes.

Information on service turnover is often collected by business surveys. However, quite a number of National Statistical Institutes rely on administrative sources, i.e. VAT declarations, to obtain the data. There are also cases where both methods are used; for example, larger enterprises might be asked to contribute to a survey whereas the data for smaller enterprises area collected from VAT registers.

European aggregates are calculated by summing up weighted national indices for individual service activities. The weights correspond to the share of the countries in the turnover of service activities in the base year.

The data in this article are calculated with 2021 as the base year (=100).

Context

Together with the relatively new index for services production the turnover index for services is one of the most important indicator for the development of service industries in the EU. It is used to analyse business cycle trends in the service industry and as input for national accounts statistics.