Current account posts deficit of EUR 209 mn in April 2009
Current accountThe current account posted a deficit of EUR 209 mn in April 2009, compared with a deficit of EUR 778 mn a year earlier. For the twelve months (May 2008–April 2009) the current account surplus was EUR 3 bn, having still been EUR 7.3 bn a year ago. The current account deficit was affected by dividends paid abroad. Dividends on portfolio investment have also been paid in April-May in previous years. Dividends paid abroad on portfolio investment in Finland decreased in April 2009, to about half the level recorded a year earlier and totalled EUR 972 mn. In April 2008 dividend paid abroad were 2 046 mn euro. In BOP terms, there was a EUR 869 mn surplus on goods in April.1 Other BOP items posted deficits: services account EUR 47 mn, current transfers account EUR 200 mn and income account EUR 831 mn. Dividends are included in the income account. |
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Financial account and international investment position
Net capital outflows in April 2009 exceeded inflows by EUR 70 bn. There was a net outflow of EUR 13.2 bn in portfolio investment and a net inflow of EUR 12.8 bn in other investment (loans, deposits and trade credits). The central government repaid some of the debt relating to short- and long-term debt securities, financed reducing its foreign deposits. Direct investments resulted in a net capital inflow of EUR 0.4 bn. The net capital outflow arising from derivative contracts totalled EUR 0.3 bn.
At the end of April 2009, Finnish residents’ external liabilities exceeded their external assets by EUR 20.6 bn. Gross assets totalled EUR 408.3 bn and gross liabilities EUR 428.9 bn. For non-financial corporations, monetary financial institutions, central government and local government, external liabilities exceeded external assets. In contrast, the external assets of the central bank, other financial institutions, employment pension funds and households exceeded their external liabilities. For Finnish residents, portfolio liabilities exceeded portfolio assets by EUR 42.5 bn. Other liabilities – loans, deposits and trade credits – also exceeded other assets. In contrast, direct investment assets exceeded direct investment liabilities by EUR 19.8 bn. At the end of April, Finnish resident’s foreign liabilities, excluding equity items, exceeded their foreign assets by EUR 26.8 bn. |
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1 BOP goods trade data differ from the Board of Custom’s foreign trade statistics because of freight and insurance cost adjustment: in BOP statistics, the share of foreign carriers and insurers is deducted from the Board of Customs’ CIF-based goods imports and added to transportation and insurance costs.
Finland's balance of payments
Year 2008, |
March 2009, EUR million |
April 2009, EUR million |
12 month moving sum, EUR million | |
| Current account | 4,383 | -307 | -209 | 3,043 |
| Goods | 6,003 | 158 | 869 | 4,754 |
| Services | 1,593 | -3 | -47 | 1,237 |
| Income | -1,647 | -287 | -831 | -1,376 |
| Transfers | -1,566 | -175 | -200 | -1,572 |
| Capital account* | 166 | – | – | – |
| Financial account | 6,875 | 4,671 | -70 | 19,014 |
| Direct investment | -4,087 | -495 | 402 | -998 |
| Portfolio investment** | 4,120 | 6,642 | -13,206 | 4,911 |
| Other investment | 5,458 | -1,397 | 12,753 | 9,503 |
| Reserve assets | -192 | 108 | 231 | 126 |
| Financial derivatives | 1,576 | -187 | -251 | 5,472 |
| Errors and omissions | -11,424 | -4,364 | 279 | -22,168 |
The statistics become final more than two years after the end of the reference year.
* Capital account is not estimated monthly. The figures are published first after the yearly data are prepared.
** Beginning with the data on the stock of portfolio investment in December 2008, the statistics on portfolio investment are based on security-by-security data collection. Because of the change in statistical methodology, the figures from January onwards are not entirely comparable with earlier periods.
More information
Anne Turkkila +358 10 831 2175, email firstname.surname(at)bof.fi