EU current account surplus €107.9 bn

Overview

In the fourth quarter of 2023, the EU seasonally adjusted current account of the balance of payments recorded a surplus of €107.9 billion (+2.5% of GDP), compared with a surplus of €86.2 billion (+2.0% of GDP) in the third quarter of 2023 and a surplus of €24.3 billion (+0.6% of GDP) in the fourth quarter of 2022, according to estimates released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

EU current and capital accounts

In the fourth quarter of 2023 compared with the third quarter of 2023, based on seasonally adjusted data

the surplus of the goods account decreased (+€63.9 bn compared to +€76.1 bn),
the surplus of the services account increased (+€62.3 bn compared to +€24.4 bn),
the surplus of the primary income account decreased (+€4.6 bn compared to +€8.6 bn) and
the deficit of the secondary income account decreased (-€22.9 bn compared to -€23.0 bn).

In addition, during the same period, the deficit of the capital account increased (-€10.5 bn compared to -€0.3 bn).

Current account balance

EU current and capital accounts – calendar and seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
		Current account	Goods	Services	Primary income	Secondary income	Current account as % of GDP	Capital account
Q4 2022	Credit	1 333.1	700.6	338.7	256.2	37.5	32.7%	31.3
	Debit	1 308.8	711.1	268.5	267.1	62.1	32.1%	30.1
	Balance	24.3	-10.5	70.2	-10.8	-24.6	0.6%	1.3
Q1 2023	Credit	1 324.6	676.3	333.4	277.2	37.7	31.7%	19.5
	Debit	1 266.7	636.7	292.4	276.2	61.3	30.3%	31.7
	Balance	57.9	39.5	41.0	1.0	-23.6	1.4%	-12.2
Q2 2023	Credit	1 324.0	655.4	332.6	294.8	41.1	31.3%	14.1
	Debit	1 252.3	604.2	297.8	287.2	63.0	29.6%	21.8
	Balance	71.7	51.2	34.8	7.6	-21.9	1.7%	-7.7
Q3 2023	Credit	1 326.2	649.5	333.0	303.9	39.7	31.2%	18.5
	Debit	1 240.1	573.5	308.6	295.3	62.7	29.2%	18.7
	Balance	86.2	76.1	24.4	8.6	-23.0	2.0%	-0.3
Q4 2023	Credit	1 310.4	640.1	341.4	288.6	40.2	30.4%	31.3
	Debit	1 202.5	576.2	279.1	284.1	63.1	27.9%	41.8
	Balance	107.9	63.9	62.3	4.6	-22.9	2.5%	-10.5
Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q)

Euro area current account – calendar and seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
	Q4 2022	Q1 2023	Q2 2023	Q3 2023	Q4 2023
Current account balance	-6.4	27.9	59.5	74.8	72.3
Balance of trade in goods	-0.7	45.2	58.1	77.8	65.3
Balance of trade in services	39.4	21.5	33.2	33.7	33.1
Balance of primary income	-5.4	-4.1	10.1	7.2	14.8
Balance of secondary income	-39.7	-34.6	-41.9	-43.9	-40.9
Current account balance as % of GDP	-0.2%	0.8%	1.7%	2.1%	2.0%
Source: ECB

EU main partners

In the fourth quarter of 2023, based on non-seasonally adjusted data, the EU recorded current account surpluses with the United Kingdom (+€62.3 bn), Switzerland (+€26.5 bn), the USA (+€23.0 bn), Canada (+€9.9 bn), Brazil (+€9.1 bn), Hong Kong (+€8.5 bn), offshore financial centres (+€7.9 bn), Japan (+€6.0 bn) and Russia (+€1.8 bn). Deficits were registered with China (-€32.1 bn) and India (-€0.8 bn).

EU financial account

Based on non-seasonally adjusted data, in the fourth quarter of 2023

direct investment assets of the EU decreased by €375.3 bn and
direct investment liabilities decreased by €370.1 bn.

As a result, the EU was a net recipient of direct investment from the rest of the world with net inflows of €5.1 bn.

At the same time,

portfolio investment recorded a net inflow of €81.2 bn, while
other investment recorded a net outflow of €89.5 bn.

EU financial account – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
	Q4 2022	Q1 2023	Q2 2023	Q3 2023	Q4 2023
Net financial account	17.9	76.2	80.8	72.1	34.1
Net acquisition of assets	-502.4	396.2	15.4	122.9	-416.0
Net incurrence of liabilities	-520.3	320.0	-65.4	50.8	-450.1
Net direct investment	21.6	90.2	8.1	-2.2	-5.1
Net acquisition of assets	-240.3	55.5	-102.3	2.4	-375.3
Net incurrence of liabilities	-261.9	-34.7	-110.4	4.6	-370.1
Net portfolio investment	-25.1	-138.4	49.4	-23.6	-81.2
Net acquisition of assets	70.7	39.5	178.7	81.9	23.5
Net incurrence of liabilities	95.8	177.9	129.3	105.4	104.7
Net other investment	-14.6	114.0	-6.1	100.4	89.5
Net acquisition of assets	-368.8	290.8	-90.4	41.1	-95.1
Net incurrence of liabilities	-354.2	176.8	-84.3	-59.3	-184.6
Net financial derivatives and employee stock options	16.0	23.2	-1.8	2.3	21.1
Reserve assets	19.9	-12.8	31.3	-4.8	9.8
Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q)

Current account of Member States (including intra-EU flows)

As concerns the total (intra-EU plus extra-EU) current account balances of the EU Member States, based on available non-seasonally adjusted data, fifteen Member States recorded surpluses, eleven recorded deficits and one Member State had its current account in balance in the fourth quarter of 2023. The highest surpluses were observed in Germany (+€68.7 bn), the Netherlands (+€22.6 bn), Denmark (+€12.1 bn), Sweden (+€10.2 bn), Spain, Italy (both +€8.5 bn) and France (+€6.5 bn). The largest deficits were recorded for Romania (-€6.9 bn) and Greece (‑€6.8 bn).

Tables

EU current account, breakdown by main partner countries – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
Partner	Period	Credit	Debit	Balance
Total	Q4 2022	1 354.2	1 354.2	0.0
Total	Q4 2023	1 342.9	1 245.4	97.5
United Kingdom	Q4 2022	216.8	171.7	45.0
United Kingdom	Q4 2023	228.3	166.0	62.3
USA	Q4 2022	295.4	286.3	9.2
USA	Q4 2023	301.7	278.8	23.0
Switzerland	Q4 2022	115.3	86.8	28.5
Switzerland	Q4 2023	110.5	84.0	26.5
China*	Q4 2022	98.2	156.8	-58.6
China*	Q4 2023	95.4	127.5	-32.1
Russia	Q4 2022	22.8	36.2	-13.4
Russia	Q4 2023	16.4	14.5	1.8
Japan	Q4 2022	39.3	33.4	5.9
Japan	Q4 2023	37.7	31.6	6.0
Canada	Q4 2022	31.3	15.0	16.3
Canada	Q4 2023	26.0	16.1	9.9
Hong Kong	Q4 2022	19.7	12.8	6.9
Hong Kong	Q4 2023	20.4	11.9	8.5
India	Q4 2022	26.0	23.2	2.8
India	Q4 2023	20.9	21.7	-0.8
Brazil	Q4 2022	16.1	17.6	-1.5
Brazil	Q4 2023	24.1	15.0	9.1
Offshore financial centres	Q4 2022	79.0	75.2	3.8
Offshore financial centres	Q4 2023	79.9	72.0	7.9
Other countries	Q4 2022	414.1	452.1	-38.0
Other countries	Q4 2023	402.0	418.2	-16.1
* Excluding Hong Kong Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q)

EU goods account, breakdown by main partner countries – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
Partner	Period	Credit	Debit	Balance
Total	Q4 2022	713.0	724.1	-11.2
Total	Q4 2023	662.7	586.8	75.9
United Kingdom	Q4 2022	93.5	56.2	37.4
United Kingdom	Q4 2023	90.4	47.8	42.6
USA	Q4 2022	142.9	86.2	56.7
USA	Q4 2023	134.4	77.8	56.7
Switzerland	Q4 2022	47.3	40.4	6.9
Switzerland	Q4 2023	41.7	36.3	5.4
China*	Q4 2022	73.4	140.5	-67.1
China*	Q4 2023	68.7	111.6	-43.0
Russia	Q4 2022	13.6	31.9	-18.3
Russia	Q4 2023	9.6	10.4	-0.8
Japan	Q4 2022	21.1	17.6	3.4
Japan	Q4 2023	17.9	15.8	2.1
Canada	Q4 2022	12.2	7.5	4.7
Canada	Q4 2023	12.2	6.0	6.2
Hong Kong	Q4 2022	8.3	5.4	2.9
Hong Kong	Q4 2023	8.4	4.6	3.7
India	Q4 2022	13.2	15.3	-2.0
India	Q4 2023	12.6	13.0	-0.4
Brazil	Q4 2022	11.1	11.0	0.1
Brazil	Q4 2023	9.3	10.6	-1.3
Offshore financial centres	Q4 2022	27.1	17.4	9.6
Offshore financial centres	Q4 2023	17.8	15.2	2.5
Other countries	Q4 2022	257.6	300.2	-42.6
Other countries	Q4 2023	248.2	242.3	5.9
* Excluding Hong Kong Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q)

EU services account, breakdown by main partner countries – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
Partner	Period	Credit	Debit	Balance
Total	Q4 2022	345.4	306.1	39.3
Total	Q4 2023	351.4	322.4	29.0
United Kingdom	Q4 2022	61.9	53.1	8.8
United Kingdom	Q4 2023	66.1	57.3	8.8
USA	Q4 2022	76.3	109.3	-33.0
USA	Q4 2023	77.4	110.5	-33.0
Switzerland	Q4 2022	38.1	21.0	17.0
Switzerland	Q4 2023	37.5	20.8	16.7
China*	Q4 2022	15.6	13.1	2.4
China*	Q4 2023	16.1	12.2	4.0
Russia	Q4 2022	4.2	1.9	2.3
Russia	Q4 2023	2.7	1.3	1.4
Japan	Q4 2022	9.6	4.2	5.4
Japan	Q4 2023	10.0	5.0	5.0
Canada	Q4 2022	6.4	4.9	1.5
Canada	Q4 2023	6.4	5.1	1.3
Hong Kong	Q4 2022	6.4	3.8	2.5
Hong Kong	Q4 2023	6.6	3.5	3.1
India	Q4 2022	5.9	6.9	-1.0
India	Q4 2023	5.6	7.6	-2.0
Brazil	Q4 2022	5.4	2.4	3.0
Brazil	Q4 2023	5.6	2.4	3.2
Offshore financial centres	Q4 2022	23.5	26.5	-3.0
Offshore financial centres	Q4 2023	24.9	23.3	1.7
Other countries	Q4 2022	98.7	62.7	36.0
Other countries	Q4 2023	99.1	77.1	22.0
* Excluding Hong Kong Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q)

EU direct investment, breakdown by main partner countries – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
Partner	Period	Net acquisition of Assets	Net incurrence of Liabilities	Net
Total	Q4 2022	-240.3	-261.9	21.6
Total	Q4 2023	-375.3	-370.1	-5.1
United Kingdom	Q4 2022	-298.6	-183.2	-115.4
United Kingdom	Q4 2023	-66.6	-58.1	-8.4
USA	Q4 2022	11.1	2.5	8.6
USA	Q4 2023	-173.5	-249.7	76.2
Switzerland	Q4 2022	-0.9	13.8	-14.7
Switzerland	Q4 2023	-63.0	-38.5	-24.5
China*	Q4 2022	5.4	4.3	1.2
China*	Q4 2023	-0.1	5.4	-5.5
Russia	Q4 2022	-9.6	-6.0	-3.5
Russia	Q4 2023	-10.0	-1.5	-8.5
Japan	Q4 2022	5.4	12.2	-6.8
Japan	Q4 2023	-0.4	0.8	-1.2
Canada	Q4 2022	3.1	-3.8	6.9
Canada	Q4 2023	-15.7	-23.8	8.1
Hong Kong	Q4 2022	5.9	-1.5	7.5
Hong Kong	Q4 2023	-19.1	-40.2	21.1
India	Q4 2022	6.1	-0.7	6.8
India	Q4 2023	0.2	0.7	-0.5
Brazil	Q4 2022	-8.7	-2.3	-6.4
Brazil	Q4 2023	0.5	11.7	-11.1
Offshore financial centres	Q4 2022	27.0	-115.0	142.1
Offshore financial centres	Q4 2023	-16.4	-44.0	27.6
Other countries	Q4 2022	19.2	16.4	2.8
Other countries	Q4 2023	-30.3	27.0	-57.2
* Excluding Hong Kong Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q)

Current accounts balances – national data (intra-EU + extra-EU) – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
Countries	Q4 2022	Q1 2023	Q2 2023	Q3 2023	Q4 2023
Belgium	1.5	0.2	-5.0	-3.1	2.2
Bulgaria	-0.9	-0.4	0.6	0.4	-0.8
Czechia	-2.6	1.5	-0.8	0.0	0.5
Denmark	12.7	8.0	11.6	9.2	12.1
Germany	56.3	63.7	45.2	65.5	68.7
Estonia	-0.3	0.0	-0.3	-0.4	-0.1
Ireland	15.1	13.6	15.8	20.8	-0.4
Greece	-9.3	-3.9	-4.2	1.0	-6.8
Spain	6.3	10.5	8.6	10.5	8.5
France	-8.0	-11.4	-9.5	-6.6	6.5
Croatia	-1.7	-2.6	-0.7	5.2	-1.1
Italy	-0.2	-8.5	-0.4	11.0	8.5
Cyprus	-0.1	-1.9	-0.3	-0.5	-0.9
Latvia	-0.1	-0.5	-0.4	-0.6	-0.2
Lithuania	-0.8	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.8
Luxembourg	0.3	0.4	1.7	1.8	1.5
Hungary	-4.9	0.0	1.0	0.4	-0.9
Malta	-0.1	-0.1	0.0	0.2	0.0
Netherlands	20.4	27.1	23.0	31.7	22.6
Austria	1.6	7.3	-1.2	2.0	4.7
Poland	-1.7	4.7	1.5	1.8	3.7
Portugal	0.2	0.0	0.6	3.4	-0.3
Romania	-4.9	-4.0	-5.1	-6.6	-6.9
Slovenia	-0.4	0.5	1.1	0.6	0.6
Slovakia	-2.8	-0.6	0.3	-0.4	-1.2
Finland	1.1	-0.7	-4.4	0.1	1.1
Sweden	9.9	9.7	7.5	9.7	10.2
Iceland	-0.2	-0.1	0.0	0.5	-0.2
Norway	32.2	27.7	15.1	16.9	20.2
Switzerland	13.5	11.3	16.6	18.6	16.2
Bosnia and Herzegovina	-0.3	-0.2	-0.2	-0.1	-0.2
Montenegro	-0.3	-0.3	-0.3	0.2	-0.4
North Macedonia	-0.3	0.1	-0.1	0.2	-0.1
Albania	-0.5	-0.1	-0.2	0.4	-0.2
Serbia	-0.8	-0.2	-0.4	-0.2	-1.0
Türkiye	-10.7	-22.6	-11.3	-3.7	-4.5
Kosovo*	-0.4	-0.2	-0.3	0.2	-0.4
c Confidential * Kosovo, under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244/99. Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_c6_q)

Services accounts balances – national data (intra-EU + extra-EU) – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
Countries	Q4 2022	Q1 2023	Q2 2023	Q3 2023	Q4 2023
Belgium	-0.4	-0.9	-1.4	-3.6	-0.3
Bulgaria	1.1	1.2	1.5	2.6	1.4
Czechia	0.2	1.1	1.1	1.1	0.7
Denmark	3.0	2.4	1.9	2.1	0.6
Germany	-8.2	-10.0	-17.6	-23.4	-12.0
Estonia	0.7	0.6	0.8	0.6	0.7
Ireland	-6.4	-0.8	7.4	8.6	-7.7
Greece	2.3	1.1	5.6	12.4	2.8
Spain	18.2	16.9	24.8	30.0	21.3
France	11.9	3.1	11.4	10.4	12.1
Croatia	1.7	1.1	3.5	9.4	1.8
Italy	-5.6	-5.8	-1.2	3.2	-3.9
Cyprus	1.5	1.2	1.9	2.1	1.6
Latvia	0.6	0.4	0.6	0.7	0.5
Lithuania	1.6	1.7	2.1	2.1	1.8
Luxembourg	7.3	6.3	7.2	6.6	7.2
Hungary	1.9	2.0	2.4	3.0	2.4
Malta	1.2	1.2	1.5	1.7	1.3
Netherlands	7.9	3.9	8.8	5.3	7.4
Austria	3.0	5.0	-0.3	0.8	2.2
Poland	9.1	9.4	10.4	10.1	9.9
Portugal	5.1	5.2	7.1	9.8	5.9
Romania	4.0	3.8	3.4	3.1	3.2
Slovenia	0.9	0.8	1.0	1.0	1.0
Slovakia	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.1	0.0
Finland	-1.3	-2.1	-2.6	-2.2	-2.3
Sweden	0.7	-1.0	-1.3	0.3	-0.9
Iceland	0.2	0.2	0.6	1.0	0.2
Norway	-1.9	-1.5	-2.4	-2.0	-2.3
Switzerland	-3.3	-2.9	-6.2	-5.8	-6.8
Bosnia and Herzegovina	0.5	0.4	0.5	0.6	0.5
Montenegro	0.2	0.1	0.4	1.0	0.2
North Macedonia	0.1	0.3	0.0	0.3	0.2
Albania	0.5	0.6	0.8	1.3	0.8
Serbia	0.9	0.8	0.8	0.6	0.9
Türkiye	11.9	7.3	11.3	18.5	11.0
Kosovo*	0.2	0.3	0.3	0.9	0.2
c Confidential * Kosovo, under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244/99. Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_c6_q)

Notes for users

Revisions and timetable

The EU balance of payments estimates for the reference quarter are based on figures provided by the Member States to Eurostat 82 days (euro area Member States) or 85 days (non-euro area Member States) after the end of the reference quarter and should be considered as provisional. Figures may be subject to revision when data for later quarters are transmitted by the Member States.

A more limited set of monthly data is available in the Eurostat on-line database approximately 51 days after the end of the reference month. The publication timetable of balance of payments statistics for 2024 is available here.

Methods and definitions

The current account covers all transactions occurring between resident and non-resident entities, and refers to international trade in goods and services, as well as primary and secondary income. The capital account comprises capital transfers and the acquisition and disposal of non-produced, non-financial assets. The financial account records transactions that involve financial assets and liabilities, and take place between residents and non-residents and is further subdivided into direct investment, portfolio investment, other investment, financial derivatives and employee stock options and reserve assets. Further details of the statistical concepts and definitions used can be found on the Eurostat website here.

In line with the agreed allocation of responsibility, the European Central Bank (ECB) is in charge of compiling and disseminating monthly and quarterly balance of payments and quarterly international investment position statistics for the euro area, while the European Commission (Eurostat) is responsible for monthly, quarterly and annual aggregates of the EU. The aggregates for the euro area and the EU are compiled consistently on the basis of Member States' transactions with residents of countries outside the euro area and the European Union respectively.

Geographical information

The European Union (EU27) includes Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden.

The euro area (EA20) includes Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and Finland.

Offshore Financial Centres (OFC) is an aggregate that includes 40 countries. As example, the aggregate contains financial centres such as Liechtenstein, Guernsey, Jersey, the Isle of Man, Andorra, Gibraltar, Panama, Bermuda, the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, Bahrain, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines.

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