Comext  Comext is a statistical database on trade of goods managed by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Commission. It is an important indicator of the performance of the European Union (EU) economy, because it focuses on the size and the evolution of imports and exports. International Trade  Trade statistics follow the value and the quantity of goods exchanged between the Member States of the EU (intra-EU trade) and between the Member States and third countries (extra-EU exchanges)  They constitute the official source of information on the imports, exports and the trade balance of the EU, its Member States and the euro zone. Data  Statistics relating to the international trade represent an important source of data for many decision makers of the public and private sectors on national or international levels. Examples :  Data collection  Traditionally, customs records are the main source of statistical data on international trade. Following the adoption of the Single Market on 1993, customs formalities between Member States were removed, and so a new data collection system, Intrastat, was set up for intra-EU trade. In the Intrastat system, intra-EU trade data are collected directly from trade operators, which send a monthly declaration to the relevant national statistical administration. Information on extra-EU and intra-EU trade is collected monthly by Member States. External trade data are subject to frequent revisions, as a consequence of errors, omissions or – particularly with the Intrastat system – late declarations by information providers. When data for the latest period are released, revised data for previous periods are also made available. Eurostat publishes external trade statistics of Member States, Candidate Countries and EFTA countries. For each dataset the following basic information is available:   Aggregated data contain macro-economic indicators on both a monthly and annual basis (short-term and long-term indicators respectively). Trade flows are aggregated according to the product (main groups of SITC or BEC classification) and according to the partner (geo-economic areas). Short term indicators include:  Long term indicators include:  Detailed data record the monthly and annual trade (imports and exports) for the European Union and the euro area as well as for each EU Member State and EFTA countries. Data are disseminated by single declaring country and by single partner, at the most detailed level of several product nomenclatures (CN, HS, SITC, BEC, CPA, and NST/R). Additional datasets provide supplementary information on EU trade by means of transport and on the tariff regime for Extra EU imports.