The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) has recently released the Balance of Payments (BOP) and the International Investment Position (IIP) for the first quarter of 2017. The press spokesperson of the SAFE answered media questions on relevant issues.

Q: Could you brief us on China's BOP for the first quarter of 2017?

A: In the first quarter of 2017, China's surplus under the current account in the BOP was within the reasonable range, and the non-reserve financial account was in surplus, indicating China's cross-border capital flows have been remarkably improved.

The surplus in trade in goods remained the major source of the surplus under the current account, with the import and export of goods registering year-on-year increases. In the first quarter of 2017, the current account recorded a surplus of USD 18.4 billion, accounting for 0.7% of GDP, which was still within the reasonable range. The trade in goods in the BOP registered a surplus of USD 82.3 billion, including USD 475 billion in exports and USD 392.7 billion in imports, which was up by 12% and 23% year-on-year  respectively, a good sign of stable and rising foreign trade. But trade in services recorded a deficit of USD 60.7 billion, up by 12% year on year, as a result of an expansion of 36% in the deficit under transport due to the increases in imports as well as a rise of 5% in the deficit under travel.

Non-reserve financial account registered a surplus. In the first quarter of 2017, non-reserve financial account recorded a surplus of USD 36.8 billion, compared with a deficit of USD 126.3 billion for the same period last year. On the one hand, domestic market participants became more sensible in making outbound investments. In the first quarter, China witnessed a net increase of USD 54.7 billion in external financial assets from BOP transactions. To be specific, ODI rose by USD 20.5 billion net; external portfolio investment went up by USD 14.7 billion net and other external investments climbed by USD 19.4 billion net. On the other hand, foreign investors continued to increase their investments in China. In the first quarter, external debt rose by USD 91.5 billion net, versus a net decrease of USD 13.5 billion for the same period last year. To be specific, FDI jumped by USD 33.1 billion net, which was high; portfolio investment in China rose by USD 6.8 billion net, compared with a net decrease of USD 18.9 billion for the same period last year; other investments in China surged by USD 51.6 billion net as a result of the increases in non-resident deposits, compared with a net decrease of USD 38.5 billion for the same period last year.

The reserve assets dropped by a slight margin due to the BOP transactions, which contracted remarkably. In the first quarter, China's reserve assets fell by USD 2.6 billion due to the BOP transactions (excluding non-transaction factors such as foreign exchange rates and prices), or 98% both year on year and quarter on quarter. In particular, foreign exchange reserves dropped by USD 2.5 billion, and the reserve position in the IMF went down by USD 100 million.

Q: Could you tell us about China's international investment position (IIB) as at the end of March 2017?

A: As at the end of March, China had witnessed double quarter-on-quarter increases in external financial assets and debt. As at the end of March, China's net external assets reached USD 1.7319 trillion. Specifically, China's external assets hit USD 6.4824 trillion, and external debt amounted to USD 4.7506 trillion, up by 0.2% and 2% quarter on quarter respectively (the same below).

As for external assets, most assets rose slightly except the slight decreases in other investment assets and financial derivative tool assets. To be specific, the direct investment assets rose by USD 28.7 billion or 2%; portfolio investment went up by USD 27.2 billion or 7%, reserve assets increased by USD 4.9 billion, or 0.2%; financial derivative tool assets dropped by USD 500 million or 9%; and other investment assets fell by USD 44.4 billion, or 3%.

As for external debt, most items continued to recover except falls in financial derivative tool debt. Specifically, direct investment debt rose by USD 37.8 billion or 1%; portfolio investment debt went up by USD 27.5 billion, or 3%; other investment debt increased by USD 21.2 billion, or 2%; while the financial derivative tool debt shrank by USD 1.9 billion, or 28%.

With regard to the composition of assets and debts, the official reserve assets constituted the majority of external financial assets, and FDI, the external debt. To be specific, of external assets, reserve assets hit USD 3.1028 trillion, accounting for 48% of total assets; ODI amounted to USD 1.3459 trillion, representing 21% of total assets; portfolio investment reached USD 392.3 billion, 6% of total assets; the financial derivative tools were USD 4.7 billion, 0.1% of total assets; and other assets reached USD 1.6367 trillion, 25% of total assets. Of external debt, FDI hit USD 2.9037 trillion, accounting for 61% of total debt; portfolio investment was USD 836.1 billion, 18% of total debt; financial derivative tools were USD 4.7 billion, 0.1% of total debt, and other investments hit USD 1.006 trillion, 21% of total debt.

Overall, China still took the top spot worldwide by foreign exchange reserves, with Chinese investors becoming increasingly sensible in making outbound investments. FDI continued growing and other foreign investments in China recovered, showing foreign investors are confident in China's economic outlook. All this indicates that China's international investment position is robust.