THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 213 thereof;

Having regard to the draft submitted by the Commission;

Whereas in order to carry out the tasks entrusted to it under the Treaty the Commission must have at its disposal annual statistics on the trend of investment in the industries of the Community;

Whereas in the industrial survey for 1962 comparable basic data on the essential characteristics of industry were collected for the first time; whereas such a census cannot be carried out frequently; whereas annual statistics concerning certain basic matters cannot however be dispensed with for the intervening years; whereas, in this respect, investment is of such importance that the statistical offices of most Member States have been collecting data of that kind for several years;

Whereas, however, it is indispensable that such annual statistics be put at the disposal of the Commission by all Member States in co-ordinated form, as regards concept and method, so that comparable results for the six Member States may be obtained following a similar breakdown by industrial sector;

HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: