To provide comprehensive and timely information on business financial conditions. This information is an important component in the overall assessment of the health of our Nation's economy. The information you provide will be used to prepare national measures of corporate profits and to formulate fiscal and monetary policy.
Currently, the QFR program covers the following industry subsectors, as defined by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS):
| Mining | 211-213 |
| Manufacturing | 311-316, 321-327, 331-337, 339 |
| Wholesale Trade | 423-425 |
| Retail Trade | 441-448, 451-454 |
| Selected Service Industries | 511-512, 515, 517-519, 541 (except 5411 Legal Services) |
The Quarterly Financial Report Program publishes up-to-date aggregate statistics on the financial results and position of U.S. corporations. Based upon a sample survey, the QFR presents estimated statements of income and retained earnings, balance sheets, and related financial and operating ratios for Manufacturing corporations with assets of $5 million and over, and corporations in Mining, Wholesale Trade, Retail Trade, and Selected Service Industries with assets of $50 million and over or above industry specific receipt cut-off values. The statistical data are classified by industry and by asset size.
The survey is conducted quarterly. Companies report for each of their fiscal quarters and are included in published calendar quarter estimates depending on the month their books are closed. QFR data are published for each calendar quarter approximately 75 days after the end of the first, second, and third calendar quarters and approximately 95 days after the end of the fourth calendar quarter. Estimates are made for 36 types of business activities in the manufacturing, mining, wholesale trade, retail trade and selected service industry sectors. Each publication includes information on the most recently closed quarters for manufacturing, mining, wholesale trade, and selected service industries. Data for retail trades are available on a one-quarter lag basis, except in the fourth quarter, when the 95 days publication period permits synchronized presentation.
The QFR collects data electronically and by a mail survey. Large corporations in manufacturing, mining, wholesale trade, retail trade, information services, and professional and technical services (except legal services) industries receive a long form. Small and medium sized manufacturing corporations receive a short form. The sample frame of firms is updated annually from federal income tax records. Corporations with over $250 million in assets may be included in the QFR program with certainty, based on industry-specific asset cutoff values. Certainty corporations remain in the sample every quarter until they become out of scope. The noncertainty corporations are stratified by industry and asset size, and a simple random sample is selected from each industry-by-size stratum. Each quarter, one-eighth of the sample panel is replaced. Corporations selected in the sample report for 8 consecutive quarters.
A press release is issued concurrent with each QFR data release, summarizing the results contained within the publication. Press releases are issued in both PDF and Excel formats, and are available on this web site in Historical Data. Each QFR publication includes information on the most recently closed quarters for manufacturing, mining, wholesale trade, selected service industries, and retail trade. Publications are issued in both PDF and Excel formats, and are available on this web site in Historical Data. Historical QFR data are available in Excel format on this web site in Historical Data.
The Commerce Department regularly employs QFR data as an important component in determining corporate profits for the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and National Income estimates; the Federal Reserve Board uses QFR data to assess industrial debt structure, liquidity, and profitability; the Treasury Department estimates corporate tax liability through use of the QFR data; the Council of Economic Advisers and Congressional Committees utilize key indicators derived from QFR data as they design economic policies and draft legislation; the FTC utilizes the series as a basic reference point in analyzing the financial performance of American industries; and banking institutions and financial analysts draw upon the series in making investment evaluations.
Annual Capital Expenditure Survey