Classification of components of Income-based Gross Domestic Product

6 - Statistical discrepancy

'Statistical discrepancy' refers to the difference between two theoretically equal aggregates arising as a result of basic statistics and estimation techniques. National accounting macroeconomic aggregates, such as gross domestic product and net lending, can often be calculated in two or more ways. In principle, all the measures of an aggregate are equal. In practice, differences invariably arise due to imperfections in basic statistics and estimation techniques. This difference is called a statistical discrepancy and serves as the balancing item between two theoretically equal aggregates. It can be recorded as is, like the discrepancy between the Current and Capital Accounts and the Financial Account in the Balance of Payments. Alternatively, it can be divided in two, with one half being subtracted from the higher estimate and the other, added to the lower one, such as the discrepancy between income-based and expenditure-based gross domestic product.