Pro-competition regulation in the markets for goods and services can help boost living standards, can raise output per capita by increasing investment and employment, and can encourage firms to be more innovative and efficient, thereby lifting productivity. To measure countries’ regulatory stance and to track reform progress over time, since 1998 the OECD has been producing a set of indicators of product market regulation (PMR). This set included an economy-wide indicator and a group of indicators that measures regulation at the sector level.
The economy-wide PMR indicators measure the regulatory barriers to firm entry and competition in a broad range of key policy areas, ranging from licensing and public procurement, to governance of SOEs, price controls, evaluation of new and existing regulations, and foreign trade.
*UPDATED in November 2023 (to include to include Ecuador and The Philippines).
The sector PMR indicators measure the regulatory barriers to firm entry and competition at the level of individual sectors, with a focus on network industries, professional services, and retail distribution.
*UPDATED in November 2023 (to include Ecuador and The Philippines).
The information used to construct the two sets of PMR Indicators is collected through the 2018 PMR questionnaire. The questionnaire includes over 1000 questions on economy-wide or industry-specific regulatory provisions. The information collected through the questionnaire is scored and aggregated into the PMR indicators according to 2018 Economy-wide PMR schemata and the Sector PMR schemata.
A Working paper presents the key methodological improvements introduced in the last vintage of the PMR indicators and key policy insights derived from them. A Methodology Note *explains in details how the indicators are calculated.
For the latest update of the PMR indicators the OECD undertook a major review of their content and of their structure to ensure that these indicators maintain their relevance in the context of evolving insights from economic theory, modifications in the technological and business environment, and changes in the practice of regulation. As a result of this review, the 2018 vintage of the PMR indicators cannot be compared with previous vintages. However, The OECD has developed a methodology to ensure there was no interrumption in the time series of the PMR Network Sector Indicators.
Reports
> Improving the Business Regulatory Environment in Poland, 2023
> Regulatory Reform in Brazil, 2022
> The regulation of goods and services markest in Indonesia: An international comparison, 2021
> The regulation of goods and services markest in Kazakhstan: An international comparison in 2018
Country Fiches
The economy-wide PMR indicators have been updated every five years since 1998, hence they are also available for the years 1998, 2003, 2008, and 2013. The information reflected in each one refers to the status of laws and regulations on 1 January of the relevant year.
The sector indicators for energy, communication and transport sectors are available for every year between 1975 and 2013.
The sector indicators for retail trade and professional services are available for 1998, 2003, 2008 and 2013.
The geographical coverage varies according to the vintage. All the OECD member countries are included in each vintage. Other non-OECD countries have been added over time, some of these indicators have been produced in collaboration with the World Bank Group.
Please be aware that the indicator values from 1998 to 2013 are comparable, however the methodology has considerably changed in 2018 and at present past vintages cannot be compared with the 2018 PMR indicators.
The OECD makes this data available for use and consultation free of charge. Please use the following citation when using the OECD PMR data: OECD Product Market Regulation Database.
The OECD and WBG make this data available for use and consultation free of charge. Please use the following citation when using the OECD-WBG data: OECD-WBG Product Market Regulation Database.
Individual Working Papers describe the key results and the methodology used to build the PMR indicators for the years 1998, 2003, 2008 and 2013.
The questionnaires varied from vintage to vintage: 1998, 2003, 2008, and 2013.
Indicators on Regulatory Impact of Sectoral Regulation (REGIMPACT)
The REGIMPACT indicators measure the impact of the regulatory set-up in the energy, communications and transport sectors, as measured by the PMR sectoral indicators, on a number of industries that use the output of these sectors as intermediate inputs.
Reference: Égert, B. and I. Wanner (2016), "Regulations in services sectors and their impact on downstream industries: the OECD 2013 REGIMPACT indicator", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No 1303.
Indicators on the Governance of Sector Regulators
The Indicators on the Governance of Sector Regulators capture the governance arrangements of economic regulators in the energy, e-communications, rail transport, air transport and water sectors. These indicators are based on the OECD Best Practice Principles for Regulatory Policy: The Governance of Regulators and further guidance developed by OECD Network of Economic Regulators. Values are available for 2013 and 2018 (note that the scope and content of the questionnaire changed between these two vintages).
Reference : Casullo, L., A. Durand, and F. Cavassini (2019), "The 2018 Indicators on the Governance of Sector Regulators", OECD Economics Department Working Papers No. 1564.
Competition Law and Policy Indicators (CLP)
The OECD CLP indicators measure the strength and scope of competition regimes in 49 jurisdictions (OECD and non-OECD). The indicators focus on ‘de jure’ policy settings and cover areas for which there is a broad consensus among member countries on what constitutes ‘good’ practice for competition regimes. These areas covered include: the legal powers to investigate and impose sanctions on antitrust infringements and to investigate, remedy, or block mergers; approaches toward the assessment of horizontal and vertical agreements, exclusionary conducts and mergers; accountability and procedural fairness of the institutions enforcing the competition law; and competition advocacy.
The indicators are available for the year 2013 for 34 OECD and 15 non-OECD jurisdictions.
Reference: Alemani, E., Caroline Klein, Isabell Koske, Cristiana Vitale, Isabelle Wanner (2013), "New Indicators of Competition Law and Policy in 2013 for OECD and non-OECD Countries", OECD Economics Department Working Papers No. 1104.
The Occupational Entry Regulation (OER) Indicator
The OER Indicator is a cross-country composite indicator measuring the stringency of occupational entry regulations across all US states, Canadian provinces, 15 European countries, Israel, India and South Africa, for a set of five professional (accountants, architects, civil engineers, lawyers and real-estate agents) services, nine personal services (aestheticians, bakers, butchers, driving instructors, electricians, hairdressers, painters, plumbers and taxi drivers ) and nurses. It provides a comparative source of information on the various approaches used across countries to regulate entry into services, notably distinguishing between different areas of regulation (administrative, qualification and mobility requirements) and different types of regulation (licensing, a situation in which only supervisors require a license, and certification). For professional services, the OER indicator draws on the information contained in the PMR.
Indicator Database in Excel
References : von Rueden, C. and I. Bambalaite (2020), "Measuring occupational entry regulations: A new OECD approach", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 1606, OECD Publishing, Paris; and Bambalaite, I., G. Nicoletti and C. von Rueden (2020), "Occupational entry regulations and their effects on productivity in services: Firm-level evidence", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 1605, OECD Publishing, Paris.
Foreign Direct Investment Regulatory Restrictiveness Index (FDI Index)
The FDI Index measures statutory restrictions on foreign direct investments in 22 sectors in all OECD member states and in a large number of other countries. This index is used in the computation of the PMR to measure Barriers to Foreign Investments.
Indicators of Regulatory Policy and Governance (iREG)
The iREG present up-to-date evidence on countries’ regulatory policy and governance practices. They cover three areas - stakeholder engagement, Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) and ex post evaluation - and provide a baseline measurement to track countries’ progress over time and identify areas for reform. The iREG database is used to obtain information that are included in the PMR database in the area of simplification and evaluation of regulations and feed into the PMR indicators.
Services Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI)
The STRI provides information on regulations affecting trade in services in 22 sectors. The Services Trade Restrictiveness database is used to obtain information that are included in the PMR database and feed into the PMR indicators.
Trade Facilitation Indicators (TFI)
The TFIs cover the full spectrum of trade border procedures. Each TF indicator is composed of several specific, precise and fact-based variables related to existing trade-related policies and regulations and their implementation in practice. Some of these indicators (A to H) are used in the computation of the PMR to measure barriers to trade facilitation.
Vitale C. et al (2023), Improving the business regulatory environment in Poland, OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 1764, OECD Publishing, Paris.
Nicoletti N., Vitale C., Abate C. (2023), "Competition, regulation and growth in a digitized world - Dealing with emerging competition issues in digital markets", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 1752, OECD Publishing, Paris.
Lewis, C., et al. (2022), "Product market regulation in Indonesia: An international comparison", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 1741, OECD Publishing, Paris.
Vitale, C., et al. (2022), "Product Market Regulation in Brazil", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 1735, OECD Publishing, Paris.
Vitale, C., et al. (2022), "Improving the regulatory framework in the natural gas sector in Brazil", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 1736, OECD Publishing, Paris.
Vitale C. et al. (2020), "The 2018 edition of the OECD PMR indicators and database: Methodological improvements and policy insights", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 1764, OECD Publishing, Paris.
Parker, D. and C. Kirkpatrick (2012), “The economic impact of regulatory policy: A literature review of quantitative evidence”. OECD Expert Paper No. 3
Barnes, S. et al. (2011), “The GDP Impact of Reform: A Simple Simulation Framework”, OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 834.
Bouis, R. and R. Duval (2011), “Raising Potential Growth After the Crisis: A Quantitative Assessment of the Potential Gains from Various Impact of structural reforms in the OECD Area and Beyond”, OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 835.
OECD (2011), “Regulatory Policy and Governance: Supporting economic growth and serving the public interest”, OECD Publishing.
Bourlès, R., et al. (2010), "Do Product Market Regulations in Upstream Sectors Curb Productivity Growth?: Panel Data Evidence for OECD Countries", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 791.
Jacobzone, S. et al. (2010), “Assessing the Impact of Regulatory Management Systems: Preliminary Statistical and Econometric Estimates”, OECD Working Papers on Public Governance, No. 17.
Kerdrain, C./Isabelle Koske/I. Wanner (2010), “The Impact of Structural Policies on Saving, Investment and Current Accounts”, OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 815.
Wölfl, A. et al. (2010), “Product Market Regulation: Extending the Analysis Beyond OECD Countries”, OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 799.
Bassanini, A. and E. Ernst (2002), “Labour Market Institutions, Product Market Regulation, and Innovation: Cross-country Evidence”, OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 316.
Bassanini, A., Scarpetta, S. and Hemmings, P. (2001), "Economic Growth: The Role of Policies and Institutions: Panel Data. Evidence from OECD Countries", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 283.
Boylaud,O.,Nicoletti : "Regulatory Reform in Retail Distribution", OECD Economic Studies No. 32/2001
Boylaud,O.,Nicoletti,G., Scarpetta, S.,"Summary indicators of product market regulation with an extension to employment protection legislation" ,OECD Economics Department Working Paper No 226/2000.
Conway,P., Janod,V., Nicoletti,G.:"Product market regulation in OECD countries: 1998 to 2003", , OECD Economic Studies: Special issue: regulatory reform, No 32, 2001/1.
Gönenç, R., M. Maher and G. Nicoletti (2000), "The Implementation and the Effects of Regulatory Reform: Past Experience and Current Issues", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 251.
Nicoletti, G. and S. Scarpetta (2003), "Regulation, Productivity and Growth: OECD Evidence", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 347.
Nicoletti, G. et al. (2001), “Product and Labour Markets Interactions in OECD Countries”, OECD Economics Department Working papers, No. 312.
Scarpetta, S. and T. Tressel (2002), "Productivity and Convergence in a Panel of OECD Industries: Do Regulations and Institutions Matter?", OECD Economics Department Working Papers, No. 342.
For more information please contact : [email protected]
*The OECD and WBG make this data available for use and consultation free of charge.