Statistical Terms Glossary

A wet season or rainy season is a season in which the average rainfall in a region is significantly increased. The term green season is also sometimes used as a euphemism by tourist authorities. These terms are commonly used describing the weather in the tropics. Tropical weather is dominated by the movement of the tropical rain belt, which oscillates from the northern to the southern tropics over the course of the year.

Wetland function – processes among and within the various biological, chemical and physical components of a wetland, such as nutrient cycling, biological productivity and groundwater recharge.

An assessment of the damages inflicted on a wetland from a specific external environmental impact (e.g., oil spills on a coastal wetland).

According to Ramsar, wetlands are areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including areas of marine water the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six metres.; Aiming specifically at agricultural use, wetlands are also defined as areas that have free water at or on the surface for at least the major part of the growing season. The water is sufficiently shallow to allow the growth of a wetland crop or of natural vegetation rooted in the soil.; Land where saturation with water is the dominant factor determining the nature of soil development and the types of plant and animal communities living in the soil and on its surface. The single feature that most wetlands share is the soil or substrate that is at least periodically saturated with or covered by water. The water creates severe physiological problems for all plants and animals except those that are adapted for life in water or saturated soil.

Wetland and inland valley bottoms (IVB) that have not been equipped with water control structures but are used for cropping. They are often found in Africa. They will have limited (mostly traditional) arrangements to regulate water and control drainage.

An agricultural region in which more land is devoted to the production of wheat than to any other one crop.

Refers to the crop marketing year beginning 1 April for Japan, 1 June for the United States, 1 July for the European Union and New Zealand, 1 August for Canada and 1 October for Australia.

Wheelchair is a device providing wheeled mobility and seating support for a person with difficulty in walking or moving around.

A security sold conditionally as, though it has been authorized, it has not yet been issued. U.S.Treasury securities are traded on a when issued basis.

Any of various freshwater salmonid food fishes (especially of genera Coregonus and Prosopium) found usually in cold northern waters.

ICCAT Contracting parties agreed to establish a positive or "white list" of vessels authorised to fish tuna and swordfish in the Atlantic. Those on the list will be the only legitimate vessels which may land these species. This innovative system aims to ensure that ICCAT members exercise the necessary control over their fleet and prevent their vessels from engaging in illegal operations. At the same time, a "black list" of vessels from non-Contracting parties which have engaged in IUU activities, has been established. Although the effectiveness of this system has been weakened in the past by constant changing of flag and registration by vessels included on the list, it nonetheless constitutes a basis allowing ICCAT to invoke trade sanctions against flag states whose vessels have been involved in illegal fishing. ICCAT was the first Regional Fisheries Organisation to encourage the application of trade sanctions to non-contracting flag States involved in IUU fishing.

During the last five and a half decades, Indian agriculture has witnessed numerous changes. The major transformation took place with the introduction of high-yielding varieties of crops in the mid-1960s. This innovation, coupled with investments in irrigation infrastructure, expansion of credit, marketing and processing facilities led to a significant increase in the use of modern inputs. These developments raised agricultural productivity and led to a substantial increase in the supplies of various agricultural products for markets rather than for own consumption by the farm households. The “green revolution” has been followed by the “white revolution”, “yellow revolution” and then the “blue revolution”, leading to an increase in the output of milk, oilseeds and fish and fish products, respectively.

White spirit and special boiling point (SBP) industrial spirits are refined distillate intermediates with a distillation in the naphtha/kerosene range. They are mainly used for non-fuel purposes and sub-divided as: (a) white spirit—an industrial spirit with a flash point above 30°C and a distillation range of 135°C to 200°C; and (b) industrial spirit (SBP)—light oils distilling between 30°C and 200°C.

Sale of portions of individual loans in transactions negotiated directly with the end investors (typically banks). The Bank conducted these operations from the early 1950s through 1979 and again from 1985 through 1988. They have now been discontinued.

1. Large-scale dealings in money deposits centered in the closely-interrelated group of money markets which have developed strongly since the mid-1960s. Banking facilities offering a limited number of services to select clients (generally large corporations). See retail banking.

A measure that reflects changes in the prices paid for goods at various stages of distribution up to the point of retail. It can include prices of raw materials for intermediate and final consumption, prices of intermediate or unfinished goods, and prices of finished goods. The goods are usually valued at purchasers’ prices.

Wholesale is the resale (sale without transformation) of new and used goods to retailers, business-to-business trade, such as to industrial, commercial, institutional or professional users, or resale to other wholesalers, or involves acting as an agent or broker in buying goods for, or selling goods to, such persons or companies.

Wholesale trade is a form of trade in which goods are purchased and stored in large quantities and sold, in batches of a designated quantity, to resellers, professional users or groups, but not to final consumers.

See Subsidiary.