This textbook integrates mathematical index theory and its application in official price statistics. It tries to bridge theory and practice, due to the apparent divergence between mathematicians with ever more sophisticated and complex models and practitioners with problems that are more and more difficult to understand without broad knowledge and some experience. The text offers an introduction into axiomatic, microeconomic and stochastic reasoning as regards index numbers, with moderately difficult mathematics. It also summarizes many ongoing discussions concerning methodological merits and demerits of specific indices, such as consumer price-, producer price-, unit value- and chain indices, in official price statistics. The book is comprehensive and presents a readable overview of a great number of topics in modern price index theory and their application in inflation measurement, deflation of aggregates in National Accounts, sampling and quality adjustment in price collection and other important though controversial issues.

The Chinese economy has been the subject of substantial research in recent years in the United States and abroad. Much has been made of significant strides toward industrial development since the Communist takeover. But it is impossible to understand what has been achieved unless one measures these gains against economic events in the pre-Communist period. This book offers a record of China's industrialization, with its comprehensive statistical analysis of the industrial growth of pre-Communist China.Industrial Development in Pre-Communist China covers the period from 1912 to 1949 and deals with all of China irrespective of changes in political boundaries. For purposes of this study, ""industrial production"" includes mining, metallurgy, manufacturing, and fuel and power; the construction industry is not included. Chang finds that the average annual rate of growth of the modern industrial sector during the pre-World War I period was about 8 or 9 percent, including Manchuria. During the period from 1928 to 1936, under the Nanking Government, political unification was achieved. Peace and order were maintained and the necessary foundations for economic transformation in the post-World War II period were established.At the time of its original publication in 1969, Chang's work represented an important first step toward a comprehensive, quantitative study of the history of China's industrialization and a benchmark against which the Communist achievement can be measured, this work forces reconsideration of widely held views on China's economic and industrial development. An important reference for the study of Chinese history and economics, especially for the Republican period, Chang's work is of continuing value to all Sinologists and to specialists in economic development and economic history.

The system of official economic statistics in India has undergone myriad changes since Independence. There have been various developments in its administrative structures and changing levels of focus on different economic sectors. The types of datasets available for these sectors have been ever-evolving and undergo dynamic changes owing to real-time measurement and analysis using ICT. The Agricultural and Livestock Censuses capture data on the agricultural sector. For the Industries sector, Annual Survey of Industries and the Directorate of Industries in states are the two major sources of data. Since economic liberalisation in India, there has been an increased focus on the Services sector and developing a well-organised mechanism to cover it. This sector is covered by National Sample Surveys, Ministry of Corporate Affairs’ MCA-21 Database, GSTN and others. The unorganised and informal sectors of the economy also find coverage in NSS Rounds on Employment and Enterprises. The Census of India, the Economic Census, Price Indices and NSS Rounds on Consumption Expenditure, Enterprises and Employment, among others, are major sources of economic statistics as well. We also have new arrays of data for the formal sector in the form of EPFO, Direct Tax, Property Tax and others. Using this sector-wise classification of Agriculture, Industries, and Services, and also including the unorganised and informal sectors, the paper explores India’s structure of economic statistics. While the paper draws attention to recent datasets and rounds of surveys, the focus is also on the evolution of the system of official economic statistics in India. The paper highlights issues with the credibility and utility of the available data, in light of a declining GDP growth which also gives rise to more serious questions on the reliability of the country’s data architecture and system of economic statistics. It also discusses structural changes such as those of the MoSPI and NSC. The system of official economic statistics in India now faces the challenge of adapting to Information and Communication Technology. The paper thus emphasises the role of strengthening realtime and Management Information Systems’ data to enable evidence-based policymaking and planning and realise the vision of ‘New India’ and a US$ 5 trillion economy.