Producer Price Index for the Data Processing and Related Services Industry—NAICS 518210

As part of an ongoing effort by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to expand Producer Price Index (PPI) coverage of the services sector of the U.S. economy, a new price index for Data Processing and Related Services was introduced into the PPI in January 2002, with historical data dating to December 2000. This index, data processing and related services, NAICS – 518210 in the North American Industry Classification System, appears in table 5 of the PPI Detailed Report and is available online through this website.

The primary output of NAICS 518210 is the provision of electronic data processing services. In the broadest sense, computer services companies help their customers efficiently use technology. The processing services market consists of vendors who use their own computer systems—often utilizing proprietary software—to process customers’ transactions and data. Companies that offer processing services collect, organize, and store a customer’s transactions and other data for record-keeping purposes.

The service lines for which price indexes are available include:

Price movements for the NAICS 518210 index are based on changes in the revenue received by companies that provide data processing services. Each month, companies provide net transaction prices for a specified service. The transaction is an actual contract selected by probability, where the price-determining characteristics are held constant while the service is repriced. The prices used in index calculation are the actual prices billed for the selected service contract.

 

Last Modified Date: December 02, 2005