Value-added in financial corporations presents the share between labour and capital of value added and the change in the shares between selected time periods. The indicator is presented net of depreciation because depreciation is a cost of production – that is, it reflects the amount that needs to be set aside to replace fixed assets as they are used up in the production process. As such, this indicator provides a better picture of the returns to capital needed to maintain the same level of production in the future. This indicator is measured in percentage of net value added. The financial corporation sector includes all private and public entities engaged in financial activities such as monetary institutions (including central banks), financial intermediaries, insurance companies and pension funds. The indicator is calculated by dividing compensation of employees and operating surplus by the net value added of the financial sector. All OECD countries compile their data according to the 2008 System of National Accounts (SNA).

Value-added in non-financial corporations presents the share between labour and capital of value added for non-financial corporations and the change in the shares between selected time periods. The indicator is presented net of depreciation because depreciation is a cost of production – that is, it reflects the amount that needs to be set aside to replace fixed assets as they are used up in the production process. As such, this indicator provides a better picture of the returns to capital to maintain the same level of production in the future. This indicator is measured in percentage of net value added. The non-financial corporation sector includes all private and public enterprises that produce goods and /or provide non-financial services to the markets. In some countries, it also include quasi-corporations consisting of sole proprietors and unincorporated partnerships. This is an issue for international comparison as the sectorial coverage may impact indicators one way or the other. The indicator is calculated by dividing the sum of compensation of employees and operating surplus by the net value added of the non-financial sector. All OECD countries compile their data according to the 2008 System of National Accounts (SNA).

Firms can finance operations through debt or equity. The debt-to-equity ratio is a measure of a firm’s financial leverage, or degree to which companies finance their activities out of equity. It is calculated by dividing the debt of financial corporations by the total amount of shares and other equity liabilities of the same sector. Debt is defined as a specific subset of liabilities. All debt instruments are liabilities, but some liabilities such as shares, equity and financial derivatives are not debt. Debt is usually obtained as the sum of the following liability categories: currency and deposits, debt securities), loans, Insurance, pension and standardised guarantee programmes and other accounts payable. On the denominator side, shares and other equity correspond to a part of the own resources of financial corporations which are, by convention, reported as liabilities of the companies. Own funds, which are calculated as total net worth plus shares and other equity, would have been preferable as a denominator to avoid stock market fluctuations. However, due to the non-availability of data on non-financial assets for many OECD countries, the total net worth could not be calculated. In this respect, shares and other equity, which form a part of own funds, are selected as a denominator. The financial corporation sector (S12 in the System of National Accounts terminology) includes all private and public entities engaged in financial activities, such as monetary institutions (including the central bank), financial intermediaries, insurance companies and pension funds. If the ratio is 2.5 it means that the outstanding debt is 2.5 larger than their equity. All OECD countries compile their data according to the 2008 System of National Accounts (SNA).

Debt is defined as a specific subset of liabilities. All debt instruments are liabilities, but some liabilities such as shares, equity and financial derivatives are usually not considered as debt. Debt is thus usually obtained by adding up the following liability categories: securities other than shares except financial derivatives, loans, and other accounts payable. Consolidated data are used for this indicator. Gross operating surplus measures the surplus or deficit accruing from production before taking account of any interest, rent or similar charges payable on financial or tangible non-produced assets borrowed or rented by enterprise, or any interest, rent or similar receipts receivable on financial or tangible non-produced assets owned by the enterprise; it differs from profits in company accounts. The non-financial corporation sector (S11 in the System of National Accounts terminology) includes all private and public enterprises that produce goods and/or provide non-financial services to the markets. If a non-financial corporation’s ratio is 2.5 it means that the debt outstanding is 2.5 times larger than the annual flow of gross operating surplus. All OECD countries compile their data according to the 2008 System of National Accounts (SNA).

This indicator presents the ratio between the financial assets of the banking sector and their equity, also known as the equity multiplier ratio. This can be used alongside other measurements of the financial leverage of this sector to ascertain its overall financial stability and to analyse its financial health. The indicator covers the banking sector (covering central banks, and Monetary financial institutions, S121 and S122_3, respectively, in the System of National Accounts terminology), as well as other financial intermediaries, except insurance corporations and pension funds (S123). Leverage is computed as the ratio of selected financial assets to total equity. The selected financial assets correspond to currency and deposits, debt securities and loans, as recorded on the asset side of the financial balance sheets of these financial sub-sectors. Total equity relates to shares and other equity, except mutual fund shares, as reported on the liability side of their financial balance sheet. Own funds, which are calculated as total net worth plus shares and other equity, would have been preferable as a denominator to avoid stock market fluctuations. However due to the non-availability of data on non-financial assets for many OECD countries, the total net worth could not be calculated. In this respect, shares and other equity, which form a part of own funds, are selected as a denominator. All OECD countries compile their data according to the 2008 System of National Accounts (SNA).