Foreign shipping traffic: documentation of statistics
The documentation of the statistics describes how the statistics were compiled and what methods were used in the compilation. The data help interpret the figures of the statistics and evaluate their reliability and comparability. The quality report is based on the EU's SIMS model. The documentation also contains change releases describing changes in the statistics and possible specifying methodological descriptions.
If you are looking for statistical figures for these statistics, go to the statistics page: Foreign shipping traffic
Quality report
Data description (SIMS 3.1)
Statistics on foreign shipping traffic describe waterborne transport of goods and passengers between Finland and foreign countries as well as on the number of vessels in international transport calling Finnish ports. The data are obtained from the PortNet system and published monthly and annually.
Sector coverage (SIMS 3.3)
The statistics on transport of goods include data on total goods volume unloaded and loaded in Finnish ports by commodity group. The statistics by port also include transit transport goods as well as container cargo and cargo transported in other transport units. Data on only goods volume in transit transport or container cargo and cargo transported in other transport units can be found separately.
Statistical unit (SIMS 3.5)
Data are produced on tonnes of goods, number of containers, tonnes and TEU numbers in foreign traffic. In addition, the number of vessel visits and the number of passengers according to the port of departure or destination located abroad are recorded in the statistics.
Statistical population (SIMS 3.6)
The statistics describe goods, passenger and vessel traffic from abroad to Finland and from Finland abroad. The statistics are based on detailed data collected on each vessel visit.
Reference area (SIMS 3.7)
Data on goods, passenger and vessel traffic at Finnish ports are collected for the statistics on foreign shipping traffic.
Time coverage (SIMS 3.8)
Data on foreign shipping traffic have been published in Finland already since the mid-1800s. Completely comparable time series on goods, passenger and vessel traffic are available from 1981 onwards. In 1981, significant changes were made in the classification of goods, and these impair the comparability of older statistics.
Unit of measure (SIMS 4)
The basic unit for goods transport is tonne, passenger traffic is described by the number of passengers, traffic performance data by tonne-kilometres and vessel visits by the number of vessel visits.
Reference period (SIMS 5)
The statistics describe traffic during the reference period, that is, goods, passenger or vessel traffic during the statistical reference month are recorded in the statistics.
Concepts and definitions (SIMS 3.4)
Container
An intermodal container which can be transferred from different means of transport without reloading the content.
Dry cargo ship
Ro-ro cargo ships, bulk carriers, container ships and other dry cargo ships included in the merchant fleet.
Foreign shipping traffic
Waterborne transport of goods and passengers between Finland and foreign countries as well as foreign traffic through the Saimaa Canal.
Other vessel
Other vessels than passenger ships, dry cargo ships and tankers, for example, tugboats, icebreakers, pusher lighters, fishing vessels and administrative vessels included in the merchant fleet.
Passenger ship
Passenger ships and ro-ro passenger ships included in the merchant fleet.
Passenger transport performance
Total number of kilometres covered by passengers during a specific unit of time, usually one year. Unit passenger-kilometre.
Passenger-kilometre
A passenger-kilometre is a measurement unit describing the passenger carrying performance of some means of transport such as a passenger car, coach, train, boat, aircraft or any transport vehicle suited for the transporting of passengers. Two persons travelling five kilometres on board a vehicle generate ten passenger-kilometres. Transport kilometres multiplied by average number of passengers.
Ro-ro ship
Vessels where cargo is loaded and unloaded by moving it on wheels onto and off the ship on ramps in the stern and bow or through side doors (roll on/roll off). If a ro-ro ship can carry at least 120 passengers in addition to cargo, it is classified as a ro-ro passenger ship.
SECU unit
SECU (Stora Enso Cargo Unit) is a large container-like unit used in goods transport.
Tanker
Oil, gas and chemical tankers included in the merchant fleet.
TEU container
Measurement unit used for assessing the number of containers of different size. One TEU corresponds to one 20-foot container (Twenty Foot Equivalent Units).
Tonne-kilometre
Transport of one tonne of goods over a distance of one kilometre.
Tonne-kilometre
Tonne-kilometre describes the volume of transport, and is obtained as a product of transported volume of goods (tonnes) and length of transport journey (kilometres).
Transit transport
Transit transport refers to transport of a load through one country while the places of departure and destination are in another country or countries and the load is transported through the transit country without loading or unloading.
Vessel’s net tonnage (net)
Measurement of a vessel’s available capacity.
Institutional mandate (SIMS 6)
The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. The Statistics Act contains provisions on collection of data, processing of data and the obligation to provide data. Besides the Statistics Act, the General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act and the Act on the Openness of Government Activities are applied to processing of data when producing statistics.
Statistics Finland compiles statistics in line with the EU’s regulations applicable to statistics, which steer the statistical agencies of all EU Member States.
Further information: Statistical legislation
Legal acts and other agreements (SIMS 6.1)
The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. The Statistics Act contains provisions on collection of data, processing of data and the obligation to provide data. Besides the Statistics Act, the Data Protection Act and the Act on the Openness of Government Activities are applied to processing of data when producing statistics.
Statistics Finland compiles statistics in line with the EU’s regulations applicable to statistics, which steer the statistical agencies of all EU Member States.
Further information: Statistical legislation
The statistics are produced as required by Directive (EU) 2009/42/EC and Regulation (EU) No 1090/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council, and the required statistical data are submitted to Eurostat.
Data sharing (SIMS 6.2)
Preliminary data in the statistics on foreign shipping traffic are available on Statistics Finland's web pages monthly after the release of the latest publication and annually after the release of the annual publication in April. Simultaneously, time series on foreign shipping traffic are published and updated in Statistics Finland's StatFin database.
Statistics can be compiled as assignments from data on foreign shipping traffic in accordance with the customer's wishes. Data can be released for research use or for special statistical compilations without identification data through the user licence procedure.
Source data (SIMS 18.1)
Statistics Finland receives all data needed for production of the statistics on foreign shipping traffic from the PortNet system through the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom. When Finnish and foreign vessels in foreign traffic arrives in or departs from a Finnish port, the shipping company owning the vessel, or more frequently, its representative, inserts data on the vessel and its cargo and loading and unloading port into the nationwide Portnet system or submits the corresponding data on a paper form to the customs office, where the data are saved in the Portnet system. The data are verified and supplemented at Traficom based on monthly reports sent by the port authorities.
Frequency of data collection (SIMS 18.2)
The data are drawn for Statistics Finland monthly from the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom’s system on the last day of the month.
Data collection (SIMS 18.3)
The data are drawn for Statistics Finland monthly from the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom’s system as a line transfer on the last day of the month. The data delivery is based on a mutual data file agreement.
Data validation (SIMS 18.4)
The data entered by the shipping company or its representative are verified and supplemented at the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom based on monthly reports sent by the port authorities.
Data compilation (SIMS 18.5)
The statistics are based on register data, so they are not edited in the statistical production process. However, new data variables are derived from the data.
Overall accuracy (SIMS 13.1)
The statistics on foreign shipping traffic can be regarded as exhaustive and reliable. The statistics are based on detailed data collected on each vessel visit.
As regards the classification of goods, there are deficiencies in the statistics on foreign shipping traffic. All cargo transported in containers, trailers, trucks, railway carriages and other transport units cannot be specified by type of goods by the data providers. Such cargo is recorded as “general cargo” in the statistics. For this reason, the figures in the statistics on paper and sawn timber do not include the entire transported volume of the goods type in question, but part of it is included in general cargo.
Quality assurance (SIMS 11.1)
Quality management requires comprehensive guidance of activities. The European Statistics Code of Practice forms the basis for the common quality system of the European Statistical System.
The Code of Practice is based on 16 principles that concern statistical authorities' independence, accountability and the quality of the processes and data to be published.
The principles are in line with the Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics approved by the United Nations Statistics Commission and are supplementary to them. The quality criteria of Official Statistics of Finland are compatible with the European Statistics Code of Practice.
Further information: European Statistics Code of Practice | Statistics Finland and Recommendations of the Advisory Board of Official Statistics of Finland | Statistics Finland
Quality assessment (SIMS 11.2)
The data of the Portnet system are verified and supplemented at the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom based on monthly reports sent by the port authorities.
Data revision - policy (SIMS 17.1)
Revisions – i.e. improvements in the accuracy of statistical data already published – are a normal feature of statistical production and result in improved quality of statistics. The principle is that statistical data are based on the best available data and information concerning the statistical phenomenon. On the other hand, the revisions are communicated as transparently as possible in advance. Advance communication ensures that the users can prepare for the data revisions.
The reason why data in statistical releases become revised is often caused by the data becoming supplemented. Then the new, revised statistical figure is based on a wider information basis and describes the phenomenon more accurately than before.
Revisions of statistical data may also be caused by the calculation method used, such as annual benchmarking or updating of weight structures. Changes of base years and used classifications may also cause revisions to data.
Timeliness (SIMS 14.1)
Monthly statistics on foreign shipping traffic are published around five weeks from the end of the statistical reference month. Annual statistics on foreign shipping traffic are published at the end of April following the statistical reference year.
Punctuality (SIMS 14.2)
There is no delay between the release calendar and the actual release date.
Comparability - geographical (SIMS 15.1)
The different concepts and definitions used by different EU countries have impaired the international comparability of the statistics on shipping traffic. The EU Directive on statistical returns in respect of carriage of goods and passengers by sea (2009/42/EC) aims to improve the situation by standardising the classifications and definitions used by the different member states in statistics on maritime transport. From 1997 onwards, Eurostat has collected maritime transport statistics and publishes them on their web site.
Comparability - over time (SIMS 15.2)
In 1981, significant changes were made in the classification of goods, and these impair the comparability of older statistics.
Coherence - internal (SIMS 15.4)
Since 2001, the number of passengers arriving and departing on foreign cruise ships has been separately recorded. Before this, the number of cruise passengers was included in the numbers of the ships' departure and destination countries. A foreign cruise ship refers to ships arriving from outside Finland where the purpose of passengers' travel is a cruise, that is, the passengers do not stay in Finland but return on board the ship that goes back abrod from Finland.
In 2011, the ports of Hamina and Kotka merged into the port of HaminaKotka and data on traffic to the ports of both Hamina and Kotka are compiled under HaminaKotka.
The Port of Loviisa was merged with the Port of Helsinki at the beginning of January 2017. Starting from the beginning of 2017, data on Loviisa are presented in connection with data on Helsinki.
The vessel calls at the southern quay of Kantvik have been registered for the Port of Helsinki since the beginning of May 2017.
Release calendar (SIMS 8.1)
Statistics Finland publishes new statistical data at 8 am on weekdays in its web service. The release times of statistics are given in advance in the release calendar available in the web service. The data become public after they have been updated in the web service.
Further information: Publication principles for statistics at Statistics Finland
Release calendar access (SIMS 8.2)
Statistics Finland's release calendar Future publications
Future publications of the statistics can be found on the page of the statistics at: Future publications of the statistics
User access (SIMS 8.3)
The data are released to all users at the same time. Statistical data may be processed at Statistics Finland and information on them may be given before release only by persons involved in the production of the statistics concerned or who need the data of the statistics concerned in their own work before the data are published.
Further information: Publication principles for statistics
Unless otherwise specifically stated in connection with the product, data or service concerned, Statistics Finland is the producer and copyright owner of the data. The terms of use for statistical data.
Frequency of dissemination (SIMS 9)
Monthly statistics on foreign shipping traffic are published around five weeks from the end of the statistical reference month. Annual statistics on foreign shipping traffic are published towards the end of April following the statistical reference year.
Further information: Publication principles for statistics at Statistics Finland
Unless otherwise separately stated in connection with the product, data
or service concerned, Statistics Finland is the producer of the data and the
owner of the copyright. The terms of use for statistical data.
News release (SIMS 10.1)
The release is published monthly and annually on the home page of the statistics.
Online database (SIMS 10.3)
The database tables of the statistics can be found in the StatFin database.
The StatFin database is the primary publishing site of data, and new data are updated first there. When releasing statistical data, existing database tables can be updated with new data or completely new database tables can be published.
In addition to statistical data published in the StatFin database, a release on the key data is usually published in the web service. If the release contains data concerning several reference periods (e.g. quarterly and annual data), a review bringing together these data is published in the web service. Database tables updated at the time of publication are listed both in the release and in the review. In some cases, statistical data can also be published as mere database releases in the StatFin database. No release or review is published in connection with these database releases.
Releases and database tables are published in three languages, in Finnish, Swedish and English. The language versions of releases may have more limited content than in Finnish.
Information about changes in the publication schedules of releases and database tables and about corrections are given as change releases in the web service.
Confidentiality - policy (SIMS 7.1)
The data protection of data collected for statistical purposes is guaranteed. The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. Alongside the Statistics Act, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation and the Finnish Data Protection Act are applied to the processing of personal data. Provisions on the confidentiality of data collected for statistical purposes are laid down in the Act on the Openness of Government Activities.
The data are processed only by persons who need the data in their work. The use of data is restricted by usage rights. All persons employed by Statistics Finland have signed a pledge of secrecy, where they have obliged to keep secret the data prescribed as confidential by virtue of the Statistics Act or the Act on the Openness of Government Activities.
Further information: Data protection | Statistics Finland (stat.fi)
Confidentiality - data treatment (SIMS 7.2)
The data of the statistics are protected with careful table design.
Statistics Finland has compiled detailed directions and instructions for confidential processing of the data.
Further information: Data protection | Statistics Finland (stat.fi)