Worldscope – coverage and data definitions

Worldscope is the global company accounts “database” from Thomson Reuters and thus a key research resource for company information. It is accessed using either Datastream (active and inactive companies) or Thomson One Banker (active companies only).

Worldscope is designed to allow comparison of companies that report under different accounting rules worldwide. In addition, it records company information using four templates: banks, industrial companies, insurance companies and other financial companies. This means that many of Worldscope’s datatypes only have values for a subset of the companies covered (e.g. US companies).

For full details of the Worldscope methodology and the definitions of the datatypes you can consult the Worldscope Data Definitions Guide (Issue 14) available from the Datastream Extranet.

The Worldscope Coverage Report, also available from the Datastream Extranet, for 28th Feb 2013 includes the following coverage information:

• Argentina – total companies 144, active 105, inactive 39
• Australia – total companies 2903, active 1957, inactive 946
• …
• United Kingdom – total companies 5093, active 1890, inactive 3203
• United States – total companies 21130, active 9175, inactive 11955
• All countries – total companies 74757, active 46704, inactive 28053

Worldscope Data Definitions Guide from Datastream Extranet (click to expand)

The Worldscope Data Definitions Guide (Issue 14) and Worldscope Coverage Report are also available in the folder Database Manuals\Worldscope when using the database PCs in the Eddie Davies Library

Related Worldscope posts:

• Worldscope – company accounts data definitions (April 2011)
• Datastream, Worldscope and Units (August 2011)
• Worldscope accounting data – finding data tips (July 2011)

Worldscope is not the only database for company accounts (financials) – for example Compustat, available through WRDS,  is very popular with researchers studying US companies and Bloomberg’s Financial Analysis (FA) function gives company account information.

The term “company financials” is often used rather than “company accounts”.