Introductory text

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1172/95 of 22 May 1995 on the statistics relating to the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with non-member countries^f1, and in particular Articles 4(1), 6(2), 9(1), 10(4) and 15 thereof,

Whereas:

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1917/2000 of 7 September 2000 laying down certain provisions for the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 1172/95 as regards statistics on external trade^f2, specifies the data elements to be collected for statistics on external trade and enumerates the goods and movements which should be exempted or which need particular provisions for methodological reasons.

Whenever appropriate, common definitions and concepts should be applied in respect of data relating, respectively, to the trading of goods between Member States and to the trading of goods with non-member countries. Since Regulation (EC) No 638/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on Community statistics relating to the trading of goods between Member States and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 3330/91^f3 revised the framework for the production of Community statistics on the trading of goods between Member States, it has become necessary to adapt accordingly the implementing rules on statistics on the trading of goods by the Community and its Member States with non-member countries.

According to international recommendations and the provisions in force concerning Community statistics relating to the trading of goods between Member States, goods undergoing repair are to be excluded from statistics relating to the trading of goods. Consequently, it is also necessary to exclude goods undergoing repair from Community statistics on the trading of goods with non-member countries.

In order to ensure the comparability of information on specific goods traded within the Community and those traded with non-member countries, adjustments have to be made to provisions for industrial plants, vessels and aircraft, ships and aircraft stores and supplies, staggered consignments, offshore installations, spacecraft, electricity, gas and sea products.

Additional specifications should be provided on goods which are subject of temporary use in order to harmonise the way these goods are excluded from Community statistics on the trading of goods with non-member countries.

The coding system serving to describe the nature of the transaction should be aligned on the provisions applicable within the framework of statistics on the trading of goods between Member States.

Regulation (EC) No 1917/2000 should therefore be amended accordingly.

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee on the statistics relating to the trading of goods with third countries,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: