03 / 20 What changed from NACE Rev. 2 to NACE Rev. 2.1
What changed in trade divisions 46 and 47?
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Statistical classification only
Statistical classification only. This guide does not determine any reader's code. Confirm a code with the national statistical institute or the business register that holds the record. This is general information, not advice on any reader's registration.
Trade divisions 46 and 47 changed in three ways in NACE Rev. The Eurostat manual states the changes in the passage on Section G. The manual also states, in the passage on classification criteria, that NACE no longer differentiates between the various ways by which goods are distributed, and that the structure for retail and wholesale trade is based on the product sold, no matter whether the good is sold in a shop, online, via stalls and markets, or via vending machines.
What happened to the in store and online distinction?
The distinction at group and class level between in store and online retail trade was eliminated. The manual states that the former groups 47.8 for retail sale via stalls and markets, and 47.9 for retail trade not in stores, stalls or markets, were dropped, and the activities were included in the relevant classes. The activities did not leave the classification. They were included in the classes for the products sold, so that a retail class now covers the sale of its product by any distribution method, rather than separating the same product by method of sale.
That change follows the criterion stated in the manual: the trade structure is based on the product sold, not on the channel. A reader comparing retail statistics over time must therefore not compare a former group for non store retail trade with a current group, because the group no longer exists. The comparison must be made at class level, using the correspondence table, where the former non store classes show their relationship to the current product classes. A series that was previously split by channel will appear as a single product series in the new version, and the correspondence table is the record of how the channel split was folded into the product classes.
| Former group in NACE Rev. 2 | Treatment in NACE Rev. 2.1, as stated in the manual |
|---|---|
47.8 retail sale via stalls and markets | Dropped, activities included in the relevant classes |
47.9 retail trade not in stores, stalls or markets | Dropped, activities included in the relevant classes |
Former division 45 wholesale | Moved to division 46, new group 46.7 |
Former division 45 retail | Moved to division 47, new group 47.8 |
What moved from division 45 into divisions 46 and 47?
Wholesale activities for motor vehicles and motorcycles from the former division 45 were moved to division 46, in the new group 46.7. Retail trade activities for motor vehicles and motorcycles were moved to division 47, in the new group 47.8. The group numbers 46.7 and 47.8 are new groups in the new version, created to hold the moved activities inside the wholesale and retail divisions. The repair activities from the former division were moved separately, to division 95 in Section T, and are covered in the guide on division 45 in this cluster.
The moves mean that the new groups 46.7 and 47.8 must not be confused with the former groups that bore the same numbers in NACE Rev. 2. The former group 47.8 was retail sale via stalls and markets, and it was dropped. The new group 47.8 is retail trade of motor vehicles and motorcycles, moved from division 45. The same number denotes a different group in the two versions. A reader must therefore state the version beside every group number, and must check the group heading and note for that version, rather than assuming that a number keeps its meaning across versions.
Which trade classes merged?
In wholesale trade, classes 46.51 for wholesale of computers, computer peripheral equipment and software, and 46.52 for wholesale of electronic and telecommunications equipment and parts, were merged into class 46.50 for wholesale of information and communication equipment. In retail trade, the same principle was applied: classes 47.41, 47.42 and 47.43 for retail sale of computers, telecommunications equipment, and audio and video equipment in specialised stores, were merged into class 47.40 for retail sale of information and communication equipment. The manual states both mergers in the Section G passage, using the same wording for the principle in the retail case.
What else changed in Section G beside divisions 46 and 47?
Section G itself changed at heading level. Table 4 in the manual shows that the NACE Rev. 2 heading, wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles, becomes wholesale and retail trade in NACE Rev. 2.1, with the repair words removed. The heading change reflects the moves out of the section: repair activities moved to Section T, and the section heading no longer claims them. The section letter G stayed the same, because the section is before the split point in the alphabet, and its heading change is a consequence of the division 45 elimination, not a separate restructuring of the section.
The manual also lists new intermediation classes in divisions 46 and 47, covered in the intermediation guide in this cluster. Those classes sit inside the trade divisions, and they must not be confused with the mergers and moves described here. A complete reading of the Section G changelog therefore requires three passages together: the division 45 elimination, the channel distinction elimination and the mergers, and the intermediation creations. Each passage lists a different kind of change, and the correspondence table combines them at class level.
Read the Section G passage for the three kinds of change, check the correspondence table for the class, and confirm any entry with the national statistical institute or the business register that holds the record.