The new index, the Commercial Consumption Expenditure (CCE), allows the global payment industry, including Visa and its 21,000 member financial institutions, to measure and forecast commercial expenditures.

Using CCE, Visa International estimates that total business and government spending in 2004 amounted to US$54.8 trillion, compared to US$41.5 trillion five years ago, a 32 percent increase. For 2005, global CCE is predicted to be US$58.5 trillion, a 6.7 percent increase over 2004.

"As the first standardized global metric to track and forecast global commercial spending, Visa's CCE index comes at a time when businesses and governments are increasingly transitioning to electronic payment systems, as evidenced by our recent record high volumes," said Aliza Knox, senior vice president, Commercial Solutions, Visa International. "The global CCE index will not only help measure traction of various payment types with corporate and government entities, but will also help to identify new growth opportunities for our members."

Utilizing methodology developed in-house by Visa and unveiled in 2004 as part of a U.S.-specific CCE index, global CCE draws upon government data in methods similar to the Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) index, which monitors consumer-related spending. Global CCE is estimated using four key data elements: the amount of business-to-business purchases to acquire goods and services used in production; wholesale and retail purchases of final goods; some business capital expenditures; and government spending on goods and services. Adjustments were made for capitalized expenditures, such as construction and durable defense spending. The calculations measure transactions at basic prices, which include taxes (less subsidies) on production. The types of transactions included in CCE can be captured on a variety of Visa products including Visa Corporate, Visa Commerce, Visa Purchasing, Visa Business and Visa Distribution.

Overall electronic and paper-based business and government spending within Visa's six global regions breaks down as follows:

Europe: US$19.9 trillion

United States: US$14.5 trillion

Asia Pacific: US$13.7 trillion

Central/Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa: US$2.9 trillion

Latin America/Caribbean: US$2.3 trillion

Canada: US$1.5 trillion

Global payment trends indicate a movement towards electronic-based transactions, providing a significant opportunity for Visa's suite of commercial products. Visa commercial solutions are cost-effective and provide added value through increased transparency and control, straight-through processing and enhanced data reporting. The global CCE index establishes a valuable baseline for measuring market penetration growth and effectiveness for Visa and its member financial institutions.

Visa will provide an updated global CCE forecast annually.