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How Narwhal validates official economic data

The source, validation, storage, and revision rules behind every public Economics API response.

Narwhal turns national statistical releases into one predictable contract. It preserves the source period, unit, release date, and interpretation fields instead of flattening unlike indicators into an ambiguous number.

Official sources only

Each live stream starts with a government statistics office or another official national publisher. Narwhal does not blend a commercial estimate into an official CPI, labour, GDP, or merchandise-trade series.

The current publishers include the ABS, Statistics Canada, Destatis, INSEE, the ONS, Japan's national statistics agencies, DOSM, CBS Netherlands, SingStat, the BLS, the BEA, the US Census Bureau, Statistics Estonia, Ireland's Central Statistics Office, Latvia's Central Statistical Bureau, Slovenia's Statistical Office, the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, the Czech Statistical Office, the State Data Agency of Lithuania, and Statistics Portugal (INE). The coverage matrix shows which publishers and cadences apply to each public country.

Portugal's INE source record is published under the CC BY 4.0 licence; Narwhal attributes INE and identifies normalized and derived values in the API contract.

Narwhal's normalized outputs from these authorities remain subject to the published conditions:

Narwhal identifies its normalization and derived rates in the API contract.

Statistics Norway (SSB) tables 09190, 14710/14700, 13760 and 08792 are reused under CC BY 4.0; retain the source, table, licence and update details, identify Narwhal's normalization and derived changes, and do not imply SSB endorsement.

Statistics Finland (StatFin) tables 132h, 15b5/122p and 135y are reused under CC BY 4.0; retain Statistics Finland attribution, dataset, licence and update details, and identify Narwhal's normalization.

Finnish Customs Uljas cubes ULJAS_KAUPPATASE (final) and ULJAS_ENNAKKO (preliminary) are reused under CC BY 4.0; retain Finnish Customs, cube and update attribution, preserve final or provisional status, and identify Narwhal's selection and normalization.

Statistics Sweden (SCB) tables TAB3102/TAB3100, TAB6596, TAB6387 and TAB5391 are reused under CC0; identify the datasets and Narwhal's independent processing without presenting the outputs as official SCB publications or implying official cooperation.

Statistics Denmark StatBank tables PRIS01, AKU111K, SITC2R4M and SITC2R4 are reused under CC BY 4.0; retain Statistics Denmark and table attribution and identify Narwhal's normalization.

Eurostat reuse terms cover Denmark's namq_10_gdp and Luxembourg's namq_10_gdp, une_rt_q, lfsq_argan and ext_st_27_2020msbec selections; retain Eurostat, dataset and access-date attribution, identify Narwhal's changes, and state that Eurostat is not responsible for those changes.

STATEC national CPI dataset DSD_ECOICOP_PRIX@DF_E5405 is reused under CC0; retain STATEC identification and the linked dataset record.

Statistics Canada data are reused under the Open Government Licence - Canada; retain source attribution and third-party notices, identify Narwhal's normalization and derived changes, and do not imply Statistics Canada endorsement.

Statistics Netherlands (CBS) StatLine tables 86141ENG, 80590ENG, 85879ENG, 85880ENG and 85427ENG are reused under CC BY 4.0; retain CBS attribution, identify Narwhal's changes, exclude separately restricted third-party material, and do not imply CBS endorsement.

Office for National Statistics (ONS) data are reused under Open Government Licence v3.0; retain ONS and licence attribution and third-party notices, identify Narwhal's normalization and derived changes, and do not imply ONS endorsement.

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data are reused under CC BY 4.0; retain ABS attribution, identify Narwhal's normalization and derived changes, exclude uncleared third-party material, and do not imply ABS endorsement.

Statistics Dashboard / e-Stat Japan data are reused under Government of Japan Standard Terms of Use 2.0 / CC BY 4.0-compatible terms; retain source attribution and separately marked third-party rights.

INSEE data are reused under Open Licence 2.0; retain source and latest-update attribution and third-party notices, identify Narwhal's normalization and derived changes, and do not imply INSEE endorsement.

French Customs (DGDDI/DSECE) data are reused under the linked reuse notice; retain the exact source and reference date and preserve data integrity.

Destatis data are reused under Data licence Germany - attribution - Version 2.0; retain the source, licence and update context.

National Statistics Institute of Spain (INE) tables 76125, 67821, 67822, 65081 and 65219 are reused under CC BY 4.0; retain source and update attribution, identify Narwhal's changes, and do not imply INE endorsement.

Spanish Tax Agency (AEAT) total merchandise-trade data use the new methodology from 2024 under the linked reuse conditions; retain source, dates and metadata, identify Narwhal's changes, and do not distort the data or imply AEAT endorsement.

Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) OpenSTAT tables 0012M4ACP22.px, 0021B3FKEI2.px, 0012L4DFTS0.px, 0012B5BEXQ1.px, 0022B5BEXQ2.px and 022B5BEXS2.px are reused under CC BY dataset terms; retain PSA attribution, the terms link and technical notes, identify Narwhal's changes, and do not imply PSA endorsement.

Narwhal reuses the following publishers' release calendar entries (dates, times, titles and reference periods) under the linked terms.

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System release calendar entries are reused from the public domain, with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System credited as the source. Narwhal uses no logos or seals and implies no endorsement by the Board.

U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration release calendar entries are reused from the public domain, with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) credited as the source and no implied endorsement.

U.S. Energy Information Administration release calendar entries are reused from the public domain with the credit "Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration". Each release's observed_at gives the date Narwhal read the EIA schedule, which dates the acknowledgment in the form "Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (<date>)".

Bureau of the Fiscal Service release calendar entries for the Monthly Treasury Statement (release dates, times, titles and reference periods) are made available by FiscalData for commercial use and reused by Narwhal. Narwhal credits the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, U.S. Department of the Treasury, as the source and normalizes the entries, with no implied endorsement by the Bureau or the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

Eurostat euro-area release calendar entries are reused with the credit "Source: Eurostat". Narwhal normalizes the entries, with no implied endorsement by Eurostat.

European Commission, DG ECFIN business and consumer surveys release calendar entries are reused with the credit "© European Union" under the CC BY 4.0 licence. Narwhal changed the content by normalizing the entries.

Ministry of Finance, Japan release calendar entries are reused under Public Data License 1.0, with the Ministry of Finance, Japan credited as the source. Narwhal edited the content; the edited version is not presented as authored by the Japanese government.

e-Stat (Portal Site of Official Statistics of Japan) release calendar entries are reused with the credit "Source: Portal Site of Official Statistics of Japan website (https://www.e-stat.go.jp/)". Narwhal edited the content; the edited version is not presented as authored by the Japanese government.

Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), Cabinet Office, Japan release calendar entries are reused under Government of Japan Standard Terms of Use 2.0 with the credit "Created by Narwhal based on the GDP release schedule (Economic and Social Research Institute, Cabinet Office) (https://www.esri.cao.go.jp/en/sna/kouhyou/kouhyou_top.html)". Narwhal edited (normalized) the entries; the edited version is not presented as authored by the Japanese government.

Japan Customs (Ministry of Finance, Japan) release calendar entries are reused under Public Data License 1.0 with the credit "Created by Narwhal based on the Calendar of Release Dates (Japan Customs, Ministry of Finance) (https://www.customs.go.jp/toukei/calendar/calend_e.htm)". Narwhal edited (normalized) the entries; the edited version is not presented as authored by the Japanese government.

Ministry of Finance, Japan, Financial Statements Statistics of Corporations by Industry release calendar entries are reused under Public Data License 1.0 with the credit "Created by Narwhal based on the Financial Statements Statistics of Corporations by Industry release schedule (Ministry of Finance, Japan) (https://www.mof.go.jp/pri/reference/ssc/results/release_info.htm)". Narwhal edited (normalized) the entries; the edited version is not presented as authored by the Japanese government.

Statistics Bureau of Japan (Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications) monthly summaries provide the actual and previous values shown on Japan's Consumer Price Index, Tokyo area Consumer Price Index (preliminary), Labour Force Survey, and Family Income and Expenditure Survey (household spending) release calendar entries, which Narwhal reads as published and reuses under Public Data License 1.0 with the credit "Created by Narwhal based on the Consumer Price Index, Tokyo area Consumer Price Index (preliminary), Labour Force Survey, and Family Income and Expenditure Survey (household spending) monthly summaries (Statistics Bureau of Japan) (https://www.stat.go.jp/english/)". Narwhal edited (normalized) the content; the edited version is not presented as authored by the Japanese government.

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW), Japan press releases provide the actual values (total cash earnings and real wages, year-on-year) shown on the Monthly Labour Survey release calendar entries, which Narwhal reads as published and reuses under Public Data License 1.0 with the credit "Created by Narwhal based on the Monthly Labour Survey (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare) (https://www.mhlw.go.jp/toukei/itiran/roudou/monthly/)". Narwhal edited (normalized) the content; the edited version is not presented as authored by the Japanese government.

Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), Cabinet Office, Japan Machinery Orders statistics provide the actual and previous values (core machinery orders, private sector excluding ships and electric power, month-on-month and year-on-year) shown on the Machinery Orders release calendar entries, which Narwhal reads as published and reuses under Government of Japan Standard Terms of Use 2.0 with the credit "Created by Narwhal based on the Machinery Orders statistics (Economic and Social Research Institute, Cabinet Office) (https://www.esri.cao.go.jp/jp/stat/juchu/menu_juchu.html)". Narwhal edited (normalized) the content; the edited version is not presented as authored by the Japanese government.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation release calendar entries are reused with the notice "Source: Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), housing data release schedule, reference period as shown on each release." Recipients use the entries under CMHC's licence terms.

Reserve Bank of Australia release calendar entries are reused with the credit "Source: Reserve Bank of Australia 2026" under the CC BY 4.0 licence. Narwhal changed the content by normalizing the entries. This use implies no endorsement by the RBA.

Banco Central do Brasil release calendar entries are reused with Banco Central do Brasil (BCB) credited as the source. The information is kept intact, with dates, times and titles as published.

Banco de México release calendar entries are reused with Banco de México credited as the source and its web address given as https://www.banxico.org.mx/.

Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) release calendar entries are reused with TurkStat credited as the source.

Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), India release calendar entries are reused with MoSPI credited as the source.

A release passes as a complete publication

A scheduled source check retrieves a candidate release and verifies its identity, period, required fields, units, and completeness. The observations and their source evidence are stored together. Only a complete release that passes the required checks becomes available to customer requests.

If a candidate is incomplete or fails validation, Narwhal keeps the last accepted publication available. It never replaces a missing value with zero or mixes part of a failed release with an older publication.

One contract without erasing meaning

The latest and historical country operations share stable REST paths and MCP tools, but indicator-specific context remains explicit. CPI keeps its base period and base value; Ireland's CPI uses its December 2023 base, and Latvia's source WorkAndSes adjustment flag is retained verbatim without an unverified Narwhal adjustment. GDP keeps its price basis, seasonal adjustment, and annualization. Trade keeps its currency and merchandise coverage; Ireland's source Euro-thousand values are converted to euros in the contract.

Decimal values are returned as strings so clients do not silently lose precision. Missing values remain missing. The Economics API reference documents the fields and accepted period format for every operation.

Freshness and revisions

Customer requests read Narwhal's stored accepted data; they do not wait for a government website. The period identifies the observation, while released_on records the official publication date.

Official agencies can revise earlier figures. When a revised publication passes the same checks, it can replace the value previously stored for that period. Narwhal does not currently expose an ingestion timestamp or promise a fixed source-to-publication delay during the public beta. See the exact freshness contract.

Current limitations

  • Country and indicator coverage is listed on the public coverage pages. Available periods vary by source.
  • Cadence follows the official source and is not made artificially more frequent.
  • Merchandise trade excludes services trade; filtered partner and product totals can remain unavailable.
  • Economic data can be delayed, corrected, or revised by its publisher.
  • Basic and Pro include a 99.5% uptime SLA; see the terms. Narwhal data is not financial, investment, legal, or tax advice.

For operational behavior, read errors and quota. For country-level scope, open coverage.