-
For the purpose of adapting to the requirements for statistics and monitoring of foreign-related receipts and payments under the new situation of China’s opening-up and for providing better services for macroeconomic decision making and social analysis and applications, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) recently revised and released the Classification and Codes for Foreign-related Receipt and Payment Transactions (2014 version) (HuiFa [2014] No. 21, hereafter referred to as “Codes [2014 version]”). The Codes (2014 version) will serve as an important institutional basis for preparing the balance-of-payments statistics in line with the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (Sixth Edition) issued by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The major changes in the Codes (2014 version) are reflected in the following areas. First, adjustments have been made to adapt to the new international standards. For example, in line with the principle of ownership changes, transit trade has been transferred from trade in services to trade in goods, while the receipt and payment of processing fees for processing trade with supplied materials and outward processing have been transferred from trade in goods to trade in services; c investments, reverse investments among associated enterprises and corresponding revenue items have been added under direct investments. Second, monitoring of fund flows under trade in services will be further strengthened. For example, service items such as freight services, import and export freight insurance, travel, project contracting, and intellectual property rights are refined and adjusted. Third, statistical preparations and regulatory requirements are better met. For example, capital flows under trade in goods are classified by whether they are integrated into the Customs statistics, and transaction categories that are not covered in the Customs statistics are further refined; relevant codes are added under the securities investments for trading activities market conducted by non-residents in the domestic securities. Fourth, the declaration burdens of the declaring entities are lessened. Revision work has been conducted in line with the principles of necessity and minimization to delete and combine certain items. The Codes (2014 version) will take effect as of May 1, 2014. The recommended national standards for the previous classification of foreign-related receipt and payment transactions will be adjusted accordingly. 2014-04-17/en/2014/0417/1111.html
-
In order to further increase the transparency of information regarding the BOP statistics and to make it easier for the general public to study and analyze information related to the foreign-exchange circumstances, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) beginning from February 2014 began to release aggregate data on outstanding forward foreign exchange settlements and sales by banks on behalf of their clients and aggregate data on foreign-related receipts and payments and data on China international trade in services, based on the specifications and category of data released each month. The previous Timetable for the Release of the BOP and Relevant Data was revised and promulgated. With the release of the aggregate data on the outstanding forward foreign exchange settlements and sales by banks on behalf of their clients, users of the relevant data will be able to obtain comprehensive insights into aggregate forward foreign exchange settlements and sales. The release of the aggregate data on foreign-related receipts and payments will enable users of the data to obtain insights into changes in the foreign-related receipts and payments in various currencies. The data on China international trade in services will enable users to obtain timely insights into China’s development of trade in services, thus increasing the reliability of relevant data for research, analysis, and policy adjustments. To facilitate utilization of relevant time-series data, beginning from 2010 the SAFE also released aggregate monthly historical data on outstanding forward foreign-exchange settlements and sales by banks on behalf of their clients. 2014-02-24/en/2014/0224/1108.html
-
For the purpose of further improving the transparency of statistical information on the balance of payments (BOP), enhancing the capacity to service the real economy by BOP statistics and facilitating utilization of the BOP statistics by the general public, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) will, beginning in January 2014, in addition to the current practice of releasing USD-denominated statistics, release RMB-denominated BOP-related statistics from 2013. Such statistics include statistics on the annual exchange settlements and sales by banks, foreign-related exchange receipts and payments on behalf of clients, the balance of international payments, and direct investments of financial institutions as well as external debts. With regard to the sequence of the release of the statements, the RMB-denominated statistical statements will precede the USD-denominated statistical statements. The released RMB-denominated BOP-related statistics are directly converted from the USD-denominated statistics based on the exchange rate of the USD against the RMB. In order to help the general public use the relevant time-series statistics, the SAFE will, at the same time, release the historical RMB-denominated statistics for 2010–2013. With regard to the statistics prior to 2010, users can select the historical time frame needed and make the conversion in line with the aforementioned method. 2014-01-24/en/2014/0124/1102.html
-
In order to increase transparency in the release of data on foreign exchange administration and to facilitate efforts by the general public to acquire and use the BOP and relevant data, the Timetable for the Release of the BOP and Relevant Data is hereby revised and promulgated (see the Appendix for details). FILE: Timetable for the Release of the BOP and Relevant Data 2014-02-24/en/2014/0224/1107.html
-
The SAFE recently released China ’s International Investment Position as of the end of June 2012. The statistics reveal that as of the end of June 2012 external financial assets hit USD4946.2 billion, external financial liabilities reached USD3197.4 billion, and net external financial assets totaled USD1748.8 billion. Among the external financial assets, direct investments abroad totaled USD392.3 billion, portfolio investments USD 259.3 billion, other investments USD979.8 billion, and reserve assets USD3314.8 billion, respectively accounting for 8 percent, 5 percent, 20 percent, and 67 percent of the total. In terms of external financial liabilities, foreign direct investments totaled USD1903.2 billion, portfolio investments USD301.1 billion, and other investments USD993.2 billion, respectively accounting for 60 percent, 9 percent, and 31 percent of the total. The International Investment Position (hereinafter referred to as the IIP) is a statistical statement reflecting the stocks of financial assets and liabilities of one country or region to other countries or regions in the world at one specific point; together with the Balance of Payments Statement (BOP Statement) it constitutes the complete international accounts system, indicating the country’s or region’s trade flows. China’s International Investment Position Unit: 100 million US dollars Item # End-June, 2012 Net Position 1 17,488 A. Assets 2 49,462 1. Direct Investments Abroad 3 3,923 2. Portfolio Investments 4 2,593 2.1 Equity Securities 5 1,006 2.2 Debt Securities 6 1,587 3. Other Investments 7 9,798 3.1 Trade Credits 8 3,101 3.2 Loans 9 2,671 3.3 Currency and Deposits 10 3,577 3.4 Other Assets 11 448 4. Reserve Assets 12 33,148 4.1 Monetary Gold 13 542 4.2 Special Drawing Rights 14 118 4.3 Reserve Position in the Fund 15 88 4.4 Foreign Exchange 16 32,400 B. Liabilities 17 31,974 1. Foreign Direct Investments 18 19,032 2. Portfolio Investments 19 3,011 2.1 Equity Securities 20 2,469 2.2 Debt Securities 21 542 3. Other Investments 22 9,932 3.1 Trade Credits 23 2,901 3.2 Loans 24 4,110 3.3 Currency and Deposits 25 2,580 3.4 Other Liabilities 26 341 Note: 1. This IIP employs rounded-off numbers. 2. Net position refers to assets minus liabilities, “+” refers to net assets, and “-” refers to net liabilities. Compiling Principles and Indexes for the IIP I. Compiling Principles for the IIP In accordance with the standards of the Balance of Payments Manual (Fifth Edition) published by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the IIP is a statistical statement which reflects the stocks of financial assets and liabilities of one country or region to other countries or regions in the world at a specific point. Changes in the IIP can be caused by changes in transactions, prices, or exchange rates, as well as by other adjustments during a specific period. The IIP is consistent with the BOP Statement with regard to the principles of valuation, measurement, and conversion, and together with the BOP Statement constitutes a complete international accounts system of the country or region. China ’s IIP is a statistical statement which reflects at a specific point the stocks of financial assets and liabilities of China (excluding that of Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, and Taiwan Province ) to other countries or regions in the world. II. Explanation of the Major IIP Indexes According to IMF standards, items on the IIP are categorized according to assets and liabilities. Assets are divided into direct investments abroad, portfolio investments, other investments, and reserve assets, and liabilities are divided into foreign direct investments, portfolio investments, and other investments. The net position refers to external assets minus external liabilities. The items are specifically defined as follows: 1. Direct investments: refer to external investments whereby an investor of one country operates an enterprise located in another country with the aim of acquiring effective control over the enterprise. They consist of direct investments abroad and foreign direct investments. Direct investments abroad include the stocks of direct investments abroad conducted by China ’s non-financial sectors, the stocks of capital and working capital allocated by domestic banks to set up branches overseas, as well as the stocks of loans between parent companies and subsidiaries both in China and abroad, and the stocks of other receivables and payables. Foreign direct investments include the stocks of foreign direct investments absorbed by China’s non-financial sectors, the stocks of direct investments overseas absorbed by the financial sectors (including foreign investments attracted by branches of foreign financial sectors and Chinese-funded financial sectors, and investments by foreign parties in joint financial sectors), as well as the stocks of loans between parent companies and subsidiaries both in China and abroad, and the stocks of other receivables and payables. 2. Portfolio investments: include some types of investments, such as shares, long- and medium-term bonds, and money-market instruments. Portfolio investment assets refer to negotiable securities, such as shares, bonds, money-market instruments, and derivative financial instruments, which are held by Chinese residents but issued by non-resident enterprises. Portfolio investment liabilities refer to shares and bonds held by non-resident enterprises but issued by resident enterprises. 2.1 Equity securities: consist of securities in the form of stocks. 2.2 Debt securities: include long- and medium-term bonds, short-term (one year or less) bonds, and money-market instruments or transferable debt instruments, such as short-term treasury notes, commercial papers, and large-sum short-term negotiable certificates of deposits. 3. Other investments: refer to all financial assets and liabilities, including trade credits, loans, currency, and deposits, as well as other assets and liabilities, but excluding direct investments, portfolio investments, and reserve assets. Long term refers to a contract period for the relevant financial assets/liabilities that is longer than one year, whereas short term refers to a contract period that is one year or less. 3.1 Trade credits: refer to direct business credits arising from the import and export of goods between China and other countries. Assets refer to the receivables of China 's exporters and the advance payments by China ’s importers, and liabilities refer to the payables of China ’s importers and the advance receipts of China 's exporters. 3.2 Loans: refer to the external assets held by domestic institutions by providing loans and lending to overseas institutions; and liabilities refer to loans borrowed by domestic institutions, such as loans from foreign governments, loans from international institutions, loans from foreign banks, and sellers’ credit. 3.3 Currency and deposits: Assets refer to the funds deposited abroad and the foreign cash in stock held by China 's financial institutions; and liabilities refer to overseas private deposits and short-term funds from foreign banks absorbed by China ’s financial institutions, as well as other short-term funds, for instance, loans from foreign exporters and individuals. 3.4 Other assets or liabilities: refer to investments other than trade credits, loans, currency, and deposits, for example, capital paid by non-currency international institutions and other receivables and payables. 4. Reserve assets: refer to external assets that can be used at any time and that are effectively controlled by the PBOC, consisting of monetary gold, special drawing rights (SDRs), the reserve position in the fund, and foreign exchange. 4.1 Monetary gold: refers to the gold held by the PBOC as reserve. 4.2 Special drawing rights: is a type of ledger asset, which is allocated by the IMF according to the capital share of its members; it can be used to repay debt to the IMF and can make up for a deficit in the balance of payments between the governments of member countries. 4.3 Reserve position in the fund: refers to assets in the ordinary accounts of the IMF that can be freely used. 4.4 Foreign exchange: refers to current assets and liabilities that are retained by the PBOC and that can be used as a means of international compensation. 2012-09-18/en/2012/0918/1069.html
-
Question: The SAFE recently published preliminary data on China ’s balance of payments (BOP) in the first three quarters of 2012. Could you please introduce the current status of China ’s BOP? Answer: According to the preliminary data, China ’s BOP status continued to improve this year. First, receipts and payments under the current account maintained a basic equilibrium. In the third quarter, the current account surplus was USD70.6 billion. For the first three quarters, the cumulative surplus was USD147.8 billion, accounting for 2.6 percent of GDP during the same period, a drop of 0.3 percent compared with the same period of the last year, which continued to be within the internationally accepted reasonable level. Second, the capital account and financial account (including errors and omissions) was characterized by a net outflow. In the third quarter, the capital account and financial account witnessed a deficit of USD71 billion, after a deficit in the second quarter. For the first three quarters, the cumulative deficit was USD85.4 billion; however, the same period of the last year witnessed a surplus of USD234.1 billion. Third, growth of foreign exchange reserves slowed down significantly. In the third quarter, foreign exchange reserve assets calculated on the basis of the BOP coverage (setting aside the influence of changes in non-trade value, such as the exchange rate, and prices) increased only by USD0.3 billion. For the first three quarters, the total increase of such assets was USD64 billion, with the increment decreasing by 83 percent compared with the same period of the last year. Question: Both the second and third quarters of this year witnessed deficits in China ’s capital and financial account, and the first three quarters as a whole also witnessed a deficit. What is your opinion about this? Answer: From the beginning of this year, China ’s capital account and financial account witnessed deficits, which were mainly influenced by factors such as the international financial crisis and the slowdown in domestic economic growth. From the fourth quarter of 2011 to the end of the third quarter of this year, China ’s supply and demand in foreign exchange market witnessed a basic equilibrium, and foreign exchange reserves maintained basic stability. In such a situation, the current account surplus inevitably was accompanied by the deficits in the capital account and the financial account. At present, the deficits in the capital account and financial account of China have three major characteristics: First, the deficits reflect the process of “foreign exchange to be held by the people,” that is to say, the holder foreign exchange assets is shifted from the central bank to domestic institutions and individuals. For the first three quarters, the balance of foreign exchange deposits of market players such as enterprises increased by USD138.8 billion. The banks themselves increased the foreign exchange position by more than USD12 billion, part of which was used for domestic foreign exchange loans and the remainder of which was used by the banks for overseas loans and investments. Second, the deficits indicate an accelerating pace of the “Going Out” strategy by domestic enterprises. For the first three quarters, the amount of overseas direct investments by China ’s non-financial sector was USD52.5 billion, an increase of 29 percent compared with the same period of the last year. Third, the deficits reflect an orderly debt deleveraging process by the enterprises. For the past few years, domestic enterprises paid in foreign exchange for their imports as late as possible, by such means as the Import Bill Advance by Overseas Banks, and accumulated a lot of USD short positions under the trade account. The original strategy of incurring liabilities in foreign currency began to be adjusted after the bi-directional fluctuation of the exchange rate, and, in particular, under the regulation of relevant policies; with respect to the imports of enterprises, the debt balance under the Import Bill Advance By Overseas Banks dropped by more than USD40 billion. Question: Some media have recently said that USD200 to USD300 billion of capital has fled from China . Is this true? Answer: We think this is not true. The scale of capital flight referred to by some media is the estimated result of the reduction of such accounts as trade and direct investments due to changes in the foreign exchange reserves, and the concept and method for such calculations are not scientific. The capital account and financial account of the BOP statements are usually used internationally to measure the condition of cross-border capital flows. On the basis of such coverage, for the first three quarters of this year, the USD85.4 billion in deficits in the capital account and financial account of China (including errors and omissions) mainly due to the fact that under the recent basic stability of foreign exchange reserves, the assets in foreign exchange acquired by China from current account transactions such as trade were no longer held by the central bank. Rather, they were mainly held by domestic institutions and separate individuals, and such assets held by domestic institutions and individuals inevitably were used outside of China by such means as overseas investments, loans, and deposits, which presented an outflow of the capital account and the financial account but was not equal to capital flight. 2012-10-29/en/2012/1029/1073.html
-
According to the statistical data released by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), in August 2012 the amount of foreign exchange settlement and sales by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD127.8 billion and USD134.2 billion respectively. The deficit of foreign exchange settlement and sales amounted to USD6.3 billion. During the same period, the total amount involved in contracts for forward settlement of foreign exchange by banks on behalf of clients was USD14.5 billion, the total amount involved in contracts for forward sale of foreign exchange was USD15.7 billion, and net forward exchange sales totaled USD1.2 billion. During the first eight months of 2012, the cumulative amount of foreign exchange settlement and sales by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD1000.4 billion and USD976.8 billion respectively. The surplus of foreign exchange settlement and sales was USD23.6 billion. During the same period, the cumulative amount involved in contracts for forward settlement of foreign exchange by banks on behalf of clients was USD110.2 billion, the cumulative amount involved in contracts for forward sale of foreign exchange was USD120.2 billion, and the cumulative amount of net forward sale of foreign exchange by banks on behalf of clients was USD10 billion. In August 2012, both foreign-related receipts and external payments by domestic banks on behalf of clients reached USD223.8 billion, thereby reaching an equilibrium of foreign-related receipts and payments. During the first eight months of 2012, the cumulative foreign-related receipts and payments by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD1667.5 billion and USD1579.6 billion respectively; and the surplus of the cumulative foreign-related receipts and payments reached USD87.9 billion. Addendum: Glossary and relevant definitions The Balance of Payments refers to all economic transactions occurring between residents and non-residents in China , including all financial transactions and barter arrangements resulting in changes in the assets and liabilities of residents and non-residents Foreign exchange settlement and sales by banks refers to settlement and sales conducted by designated foreign exchange banks for their clients or for themselves, excluding transactions on the inter-bank foreign exchange market. Foreign exchange settlement and sales by banks on behalf of clients (including foreign exchange settlement and sales by the banks themselves) refers to settlement and sales by designated foreign exchange banks for their clients. The time of conversion between RMB and the foreign currency is regarded as the time-point for the statistics on the foreign exchange settlement and sales by the banks. Specifically, foreign exchange settlement refers to the sale of foreign exchange to designated foreign exchange banks by owners of foreign exchange; foreign exchange sales refers to the sale of foreign exchange by designated foreign exchange banks to users of foreign exchange. The differences between foreign exchange settlement and foreign exchange sales are regarded as an offset balance. Such differences, which will be offset by the banks through transactions on the inter-bank foreign exchange market, are a major factor resulting in changes in the country’s foreign exchange reserves. But they are not equivalent to the net change in foreign exchange reserves during the same period. The principle for transactions between residents and non-residents does not apply to the preparation of statistics on foreign exchange settlement and sales by banks on behalf of clients; such statistics only cover transactions of RMB and foreign currency between banks and their clients, namely, exchange transactions between RMB and foreign currency that fall outside the category of the balance-of-payments statistics. Contracts for forward settlement and sales of foreign exchange refers to the contracts for forward settlement (sales) of foreign exchange executed between banks and their clients through consultation, in which the foreign currency, amount, exchange rate, and term for the forward settlement (sale) of foreign exchange are agreed upon; where the foreign exchange is to be received (paid), the foreign exchange settlement (sale) is to be handled on the basis of the amount of foreign currency and the exchange rate specified in such contracts. The forward foreign exchange settlement and sales business enables enterprises to lock into the exchange rate in advance for future foreign exchange settlement or sales and to effectively avoid the risk of RMB exchange rate changes. Generally, banks will hedge the risk exposure arising from the forward foreign exchange settlement and sales business through the inter-bank foreign exchange market. For example, where the total amount involved in contracts for forward settlement of foreign exchange executed by banks is more than that in the contracts for forward sales of foreign exchange, the banks will generally sell an equivalent amount of foreign exchange in advance on the inter-bank foreign exchange market, and vice versa. Therefore, the forward settlement and sales of foreign exchange business is also a factor that affects changes in the foreign exchange reserves in China . Foreign-related receipts and payments by banks on behalf of their clients refers to receipts and payments occurring between domestic non-bank resident institutions/individuals (collectively called the “non-bank sector”) and non-resident institutions/individuals through domestic banks, exclusive of the receipts and payments in cash and foreign-related receipts and payments by the banks themselves. In particular, they include cross-border receipts and payments between non-bank sectors and non-residents through domestic banks (including RMB and foreign exchange), and domestic receipts and payments between non-bank sectors and non-residents through domestic banks (temporarily excluding receipts and payments in RMB between domestic individual residents and domestic non-resident individuals). Statistics are collected at the time when the clients conduct the foreign-related receipts and payments at the domestic banks. Specifically, foreign-related receipts of banks on behalf of clients refers to funds collected by non-bank sectors from non-residents via domestic banks; external payments by banks on behalf of clients refers to funds paid by non-bank sectors to non-residents through domestic banks. Although the foreign-related receipts and payments by banks on behalf of clients are an integral part of the balance-of-payments statistics, the accounting method for the statistics, different from the accrual basis of accounting required by the balance-of- payments statistics, is based on a cash basis. In addition, it merely reflects capital flows between the non-bank sectors and non-residents and does not include barter transactions or foreign transactions conducted by the banks themselves. Furthermore, the scope of the statistics on foreign-related receipts and payments of banks on behalf of clients is smaller than the scope of the balance-of-payments statistics. 2012-09-18/en/2012/0918/1070.html
-
At the end of September 2012, China’s outstanding external debt (excluding that of Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, and Taiwan Province, the same below) reached USD770.833 billion. Specifically, the outstanding registered external debt totaled USD471.333 billion and the balance of trade credit between enterprises totaled USD299.5 billion. In terms of structure, the outstanding long- and medium-term external debt (with the remaining term) was USD198.017 billion and the outstanding short-term external debt (with the remaining term) was USD572.816 billion. Specifically, trade credit between enterprises and bank trade financing accounted for 52.29 percent and 21.12 percent respectively. Together, the two accounted for 73.41 percent of the outstanding short-term external debt (with the remaining term). In terms of type of debtor, the outstanding debt of Chinese-funded financial institutions was USD229.579 billion, accounting for 48.71 percent of the outstanding registered external debt; the outstanding debt of foreign-funded enterprises was USD 145.578 billion, accounting for 30.89 percent; the outstanding debt of foreign-funded financial institutions was USD53.316 billion, accounting for 11.31 percent. In terms of types of debt, the balance of international commercial loans amounted to USD404.921 billion, accounting for 85.91 percent of the outstanding registered external debt. The balance of foreign government loans and loans granted by international financial organizations amounted to USD66.412 billion, accounting for 14.09 percent. In terms of the currency structure, USD debt accounted for 77.45 percent, Euro debt accounted for 7.30 percent, and JPY debt accounted for 7.27 percent of the outstanding registered external debt; other kinds of debt including SDRs and HKD accounted for 7.98 percent of the outstanding registered external debt. In terms of the sectors in which the debt was invested, with reference to the Industrial Classification of the National Economy, the outstanding medium- and long-term registered external debt (based on contract terms) was mainly invested in the manufacturing sector, accounting for 28.92 percent, the transportation, warehousing, and postal sector, accounting for 14.01 percent, and the electric power, coal, gas, and water production and supply sector, accounting for 7.36 percent. In the first nine months of 2012, China newly borrowed USD30.987 billion of medium- and long-term external debt, repaid USD23.426 billion of principal of the long- and medium-term external debt, and paid USD1.749 billion of interest. Net inflows under the outstanding long- and medium-term external debt were USD5.812 billion, down 48.14 percent on a year-on-year basis. (End.) Addendum: Definitions of terms and explanations Classification of the term structure of external debt. There are two classification methods for the classification of external debt in terms of the term structure. First, classification on the basis of contract terms, i.e. classified as medium- and long-term external debt in cases of the contract term being over one year, and classified as short-term external debt in cases of the contract term being one year or less; second, classification on the basis of the remaining term, i.e., on the basis of the above classification method, the medium- and long-term external debt due within one year is classified as short-term external debt. For the convenience of differentiating between the two classification methods, in this news release indication of the classification method, i.e., contract term or remaining term, follows the medium- and long-term external debt and the short-term external debt. Trade credit between enterprises refers to the external liability arising from directly extending credit between the seller and buyer of goods, specifically transactions between residents in mainland China and foreign non-residents (including non-residents in Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, and Taiwan Province), i.e., debt incurred due to the difference between the time of payment and that of the transfer of the goods ownership. Trade credit between enterprises includes credit directly provided by the supplier (e.g., the overseas exporter) for commodity transactions and services, and advance payments made by buyers (e.g., overseas importers) for goods, services, and on-going business (or business to be undertaken). Bank trade financing refers to loans extended by a third party (e.g., banks) related to trade with exporters or importers, for instance, loans extended by foreign financial institutions or export credit agencies to buyers. Trade-related credit is a broad concept. In addition to trade credit between enterprises, it also includes other kinds of credits provided for trade activities. According to the definition, trade-related credit includes trade credit between enterprises, bank trade financing, short-term notes related to trade, and so forth. 2012-12-27/en/2012/1227/1075.html
-
As of the end of June 2012, China ’s outstanding external debt (excluding that of Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, and Taiwan Province ) reached USD785.172 billion. Specifically, the outstanding registered external debt reached USD495.072 billion and the balance of trade credit between enterprises totaled USD290.1 billion. With respect to the term structure, outstanding long- and medium-term external debt (with the remaining term) was USD196.95 billion and outstanding short-term external debt (with the remaining term) was USD588.222 billion. Specifically, trade credit between enterprises and bank trade financing respectively accounted for 49.32 percent and 24.57 percent of the total. The two accounted for 73.89 percent of the outstanding short-term external debt (with the remaining term). In terms of the type of debtor, the outstanding debt of Chinese-funded financial institutions was USD253.215 billion, accounting for 51.15 percent of the outstanding registered external debt; the outstanding debt of foreign-funded enterprises was USD141.54 billion, accounting for 28.59 percent; and the outstanding debt of foreign-funded financial institutions was USD57.284 billion, accounting for 11.57 percent. In terms of the types of debt, the balance of international commercial loans amounted to USD428.575 billion and the balance of foreign government loans and loans granted by international financial organizations amounted to USD66.497 billion. In terms of the currency structure, USD debt accounted for 77.77 percent, Euro debt 7.51 percent, and JPY debt 6.99 percent of the outstanding registered external debt. In terms of the sectors in which the debt is invested, with reference to the Industrial Classification of the National Economy, the outstanding medium- and long-term registered external debt (based on contract terms) invested in the manufacturing sector accounted for 23.67 percent, the transportation, storage, and postal sector 13.31 percent, and the electric power, coal, gas, and water production and supply sector 6.90 percent. In the first half of 2012, China newly borrowed USD21.255 billion in medium- and long-term external debt, repaid USD14.779 billion in principal of long- and medium-term external debt, and paid USD1.198 billion in interest. The net inflows under the outstanding long- and medium-term external debt were USD5.278 billion, down 25.24 percent on a year-on-year basis. Addendum: Definition of terms and interpretations Classification of the term structure of external debt. There are two classification methods for the classification of external debt in terms of the term structure. First, classification on the basis of the contract term, i.e., it is classified as medium- and long-term external debt in cases where the contract term is more than one year, and it is classified as short-term external debt in cases where the contract term is one year or less; second, classification on the basis of the remaining term, i.e., on the basis of the above classification method, medium- and long-term external debt due within one year will be classified as short-term external debt. In order to differentiate between the two classification methods, in this news release any indication of the classification method, i.e., the contract term or remaining term, follows the definitions of the medium- and long-term external debt and the short-term external debt. Trade credit between enterprises refers to the external liability arising from directly extending credit between the seller and buyer of goods, specifically transactions between residents in Mainland China and foreign non-residents (including non-residents in Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, and Taiwan Province), i.e., the debt incurred due to the difference between the time of payment and that of the transfer of ownership of the goods. Trade credit between enterprises includes credit directly provided by the supplier (e.g., the overseas exporter) for commodity transactions and services, and advance payments made by buyers (e.g., overseas importers) for goods, services, and on-going business (or business to be undertaken). Bank trade financing refers to loans related to trade extended by a third party (e.g., banks) to exporters or importers, for instance, loans extended by foreign financial institutions or export credit agencies to buyers. Trade-related credit is a broad concept. In addition to trade credit between enterprises, it also includes other kinds of credit provided for trade activities. According to the definition, trade-related credit includes trade credit between enterprises, bank trade financing, short-term notes related to trade, and so forth. 2012-09-14/en/2012/0914/1068.html
-
The SAFE recently released Preliminary Data on China’s Balance of Payments Statement for the Third Quarter of 2012. In the third quarter of 2012, the surplus under the current account totaled USD70.6 billion. Specifically, the surplus in trade in goods and current transfers reached USD102.7 billion and USD1.4 billion, respectively, whereas the deficit in trade in services and income amounted to USD29.9 billion and USD3.6 billion, respectively. Meanwhile, China’s deficit under the capital and financial account (including net errors and omissions) totaled USD71.0 billion. In particular, net inflows of direct investments amounted to USD37.2 billion. International reserve assets (exclusive of the influence of non-transaction changes in value, such as exchange rates and prices) registered a drop of USD400 million. Specifically, foreign exchange reserve assets registered an increase of USD300 million, and special drawing rights and the reserve position in the IMF experienced a drop of USD800 million. For the first three quarters of 2012, the surplus under the current account was USD147.8 billion and the deficit under the capital and financial account was USD85.4 billion, while international reserve assets registered an increase of USD62.4 billion. Balance of Payments1 (Preliminary Data) Unit: USD100 million Item 2 # Q3 of 2012 First 3 quarters, 20123 I. Current Account 1 706 1478 A. Goods and Services 2 728 1453 a. Goods 3 1027 2155 Credit 4 5434 15011 Debit 5 4407 12856 b. Services 6 -299 -702 Credit 7 475 1378 Debit 8 775 2080 1.Transportation 9 -118 -348 Credit 10 105 289 Debit 11 223 637 2.Tourism 12 -191 -409 Credit 13 122 360 Debit 14 313 769 3.Communication Services 15 -2 1 Credit 16 4 13 Debit 17 6 12 4.Construction Services 18 26 72 Credit 19 36 97 Debit 20 10 26 5.Insurance Services 21 -45 -129 Credit 22 6 23 Debit 23 52 152 6.Financial Services 24 -1 -2 Credit 25 2 6 Debit 26 2 8 7.Computer and Information Services 27 23 76 Credit 28 35 105 Debit 29 12 28 8.Royalties and Licensing Fees 30 -39 -123 Credit 31 2 6 Debit 32 40 129 9.Consulting Services 33 33 100 Credit 34 85 241 Debit 35 51 142 10.Advertising and Promotions 36 5 14 Credit 37 12 34 Debit 38 7 21 11.Movies, Audio-visual products 39 -1 -3 Credit 40 0 1 Debit 41 2 4 12.Other Business Services 42 12 52 Credit 43 64 196 Debit 44 52 144 13.Government Services, n.i.e. 45 -1 -1 Credit 46 2 7 Debit 47 3 8 B. Income 48 -36 -19 C. Current Transfers 49 14 44 II. Capital and Financial Account2 50 -710 -854 Of which, Direct investments 51 372 1272 III. Reserves Assets 52 4 -624 3.1 Monetary Gold 53 0 0 3.2 Special Drawing Rights 54 5 4 3.3 Reserves Position in the Fund 55 3 11 3.4 Foreign Exchange 56 -3 -640 3.5 Other Claims 57 0 0 Note: 1. This statement employs rounded-off numbers. 2. Other items refer to the differences, except for those marked by "Credit" and "Debit." 3. The preliminary data for the first 3 quarters of 2012 in this statement are the sum of the total of the official data for H1 2012 and the preliminary data for Q3 of 2012. 4. The data under the capital and financial accounts in this statement are the balance between the current account balance and the amount of change in reserve assets, including net errors and omissions. 2012-10-29/en/2012/1029/1074.html