For instance, the old GDP figures were based solely on estimates of output.
Saudi shipments fell to about 7 million barrels a day, from 7.39 million, according to International Energy Agency estimates of output and domestic demand.
Tracking estimates of output for the April-June period are now bumping around the 1% to 1.5% range.
Virtually overnight, economic pundits slashed their estimates of output growth; some suggested that the economy might have shrunk between April and June.
To come up with an estimate of GDP, statisticians need to add together estimates of output from a sample of businesses in every part of the economy, from farming to service industries.
The diary-based estimates of output value consistently exceed that from the recall-based production survey, in line with reported disposition.
The official estimate of output growth in Q3 was 0.4%, substantially below the rate expected by the committee in August.
The old GDP figures were based on an estimate of output.
The BEA's first estimate of output in the fourth quarter of 2008, published in January of 2009, showed a contraction of 3.8%, later revised to a 6.8% drop.
The cartel raised the forecast for demand for its oil this year slightly, to 29.2m barrels a day, and lowered its estimate of output from non-OPEC producers, as cheap oil forces American and European oil companies to curtail their capital spending.
