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The SAFE recently released preliminary data on China ’s Balance of Payments Statement for the first quarter of 2012. In Q1 of 2012 the current account and the capital and financial account posted a “twin surplus” and international reserves maintained a growing momentum. In Q1, the surplus under the current account totaled USD24.7 billion. Specifically, according to the statistical coverage of the balance of payments, the surplus in goods, income, and current transfers reached USD21.7 billion, USD18.5 billion, and USD2.7 billion, respectively, whereas the deficit in trade in services amounted to USD18.2 billion. Meanwhile, China ’s surplus under the capital and financial account (including net errors and omissions) totaled USD49.9 billion. In particular, net inflows of direct investments amounted to USD44.1 billion. International reserve assets posted an increase of USD74.6 billion. Specifically, transactions in foreign exchange reserve assets registered an increase of USD74.8 billion (exclusive of the influence of non-transaction changes in value such as exchange rates and prices), the reserve position in the IMF registered a drop of USD400 million, and special drawing rights registered a rise of USD200 million. Balance of Payments for Q1, 20121 (Preliminary Data) Unit: USD100 million Item # Q1 of 2012 I. Current Account 1 247 A. Goods and Services 2 35 a. Goods 3 217 Credit 4 4314 Debit 5 4097 b. Services 6 -182 Credit 7 436 Debit 8 618 B. Income 9 185 C. Current Transfers 10 27 II. Capital and Financial Account2 11 499 Incl. Direct Investments 12 441 III. Reserves Asset 13 -746 3.1 Monetary Gold 14 0 3.2 Special Drawing Rights 15 -2 3.3 Reserves Position in the Fund 16 4 3.4 Foreign Exchange 17 -748 3.5 Other Claims 18 0 Notes: 1. This statement employs rounded-off numbers. 2. The data under the capital and financial account in this statement represent the balance between the current account balance and the amount of change in reserve assets, including net errors and omissions. 2012-05-15/en/2012/0515/1050.html
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The SAFE recently released China’s balance of payments statement for the fourth quarter and the year 2011, revised and released data on China’s Balance of Payments Statement for each quarter and the year 2010 according to the updates on the undistributed profits of foreign-funded enterprises for the year 2010, and so forth. In the fourth quarter of 2011 the current account posted a surplus whereas the capital and financial account posted a deficit. International reserves maintained a growing momentum. The surplus under the current account totaled USD60.5 billion. Specifically, according to the statistical coverage of the balance of payments, the surpluses in goods, income, and current transfers reached USD70.6 billion, USD2.7 billion, and USD2.3 billion, respectively, whereas the deficit in trade in services amounted to USD15.2 billion. Meanwhile, China ’s deficit under the capital and financial account totaled USD29 billion. In particular, net inflows of direct investments, portfolio investments, and net outflows of other investments amounted to USD49 billion, USD1.3 billion, and USD80.5 billion respectively. International reserves registered an increase of USD12.4 billion (exclusive of changes in the value of non-transaction factors such as exchange rates and prices). Specifically, foreign exchange reserve assets posted an increase of USD11.7 billion. For the year 2011, the surplus under the current account was USD201.7 billion and the surplus under the capital and financial account was USD221.1 billion, whereas international reserves registered an increase of USD387.8 billion. In addition, the BOP Analysis Team of the SAFE released China ’s Balance of Payments Report for 2011 in order to facilitate understanding among all groups in society about the data and analysis of China ’s balance of payments. 2012-05-15/en/2012/0515/1047.html
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At the end of March 2011, China's outstanding external debt (excluding that of Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, and Taiwan Province) reached USD585.97 billion. Specifically, the outstanding registered external debt reached USD366.87 billion and the balance of trade credit totaled USD219.1 billion. With respect to the term structure, the outstanding long- and medium-term external debt (with the remaining term) was USD174.32 billion, accounting for 29.75 percent of the total outstanding external debt. The outstanding short-term external debt (with the remaining term) was USD411.65 billion, accounting for 70.25 percent of the outstanding external debt. Specifically, the outstanding registered short-term external debt (with the remaining term) was USD192.55 billion and the balance of trade credit was USD219.1 billion. In terms of the composition of the short-term external debt, at the end of March 2011 the balance of trade-related credit was USD311.45 billion, accounting for 76 percent of the outstanding short-term external debt (with the remaining term). Specifically, the trade credit and trade financing accounted for 53 percent and 23 percent respectively. As the trade-related credit is based on the real import and export trade, all external payments are conducted under the item of trade and do not constitute additional payments. The growth of such payments is basically consistent with that of the import and export trade in China; therefore, the increase in the proportion of this short-term external debt will not affect the security of Chinas external debt. In terms of types of debtors, the outstanding debt of Chinese-funded financial institutions was USD156.266 billion, accounting for 42.59 percent of the outstanding registered external debt; the outstanding debt of foreign-funded enterprises was USD114.929 billion, accounting for 31.33 percent; the outstanding debt of foreign-funded financial institutions was USD50.539 billion, accounting for 13.78 percent; the outstanding sovereign debt borrowed by ministries under the State Council was USD39.161 billion, accounting for 10.67 percent; the outstanding debt of Chinese-funded enterprises was USD5.844 billion, accounting for 1.59 percent; and the outstanding debt of other institutions was USD131 million, accounting for 0.04 percent. In terms of the types of debts, the balance of international commercial loans amounted to USD299.023 billion, accounting for 81.51 percent of the outstanding registered external debt, representing an increase of 1.53 percentage points from that at the end of 2010. The balance of foreign government loans and loans granted by international financial organizations amounted to USD67.847 billion, accounting for 18.49 percent. In terms of the currency structure, the debt in U.S. dollars accounted for 68.3 percent of the outstanding registered external debt, representing a decline of 2.11 percentage points compared with that at the end of 2010. Debt in Japanese yen accounted for 7.68 percent, representing a decline of 0.88 percentage point compared with that at the end of 2010. Debt in euro accounted for 4 percent, representing a decline of 0.41 percentage point compared with that at the end of 2010. Other kinds of debts, including SDRs and HKD, accounted for 20.02 percent, a rise of 3.4 percentage points compared with that at the end of 2010. In terms of the sectoral distribution with reference to the Industrial Classifications of the National Economy, USD47.841 billion was invested in the manufacturing sector, accounting for 23.01 percent of the medium- and long-term outstanding registered external debt (based on contract terms); USD26.261 billion was invested in the communications and transportation sector, the warehousing sector, and the postal-services sector, accounting for 12.63 percent of the total; USD17.356 billion was invested in the production and supply of electricity, coal gas, and water, accounting for 8.35 percent; USD8.142 billion was invested in the information technology services sector, accounting for 3.92 percent; and USD10.594 billion was channeled to the real estate sector, accounting for 5.1 percent. From January to March 2011, the medium- and long-term external debt totaled USD14.099 billion, a year-on-year increase of USD5.948, or 72.97 percent. The principal repayment was USD4.599 billion, a year-on-year decrease of USD1.035 billion, or 18.37 percent. The interest payment was USD460 million, a year-on-year decrease of USD234 million, or 33.71 percent. 2011-07-07/en/2011/0707/1002.html
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Q: Recently there have been comments by scholars that since 2003 China has suffered a huge loss of USD271.1 billion in its foreign exchange reserves, due to the appreciation of the RMB against the US dollar. What is your comment on this? A: First, the appreciation of the RMB will not bring about losses in Chinas foreign exchange reserves. Foreign exchange reserves essentially are assets in foreign exchange, which use the USD as the recording currency. Variations in the RMB/USD exchange rate will result in changes in the book value of RMB converted from the foreign exchange reserves, which are not the actually realized gains or losses. The variation only means some differences in the book value of the reporting currency, be it RMB or USD, and does not have a direct impact on the effective purchasing power of the foreign exchange reserves. The changes in the exchange of currency will only occur when foreign exchange reserves are repatriated from overseas countries (regions) and converted into RMB. Presently, China has no need to repatriate and settle its foreign exchange reserves on a large scale. In addition, equivalent incomes in RMB were attained by banks, enterprises, and individuals when foreign currencies were sold; the appreciated RMB generated considerable benefits in lowering the costs of imports, increasing incomes from investment, and so forth. That is to say, the benefits have been retained within the country. Second, the book loss of foreign exchange reserves caused by the RMB appreciation is far less than the book surplus of Chinas financial assets. The book loss and surplus generated from the reporting currency are like two sides of a coin (in economics called duality). In contrast to book losses of RMB converted from foreign exchange reserves which are denominated in USD, if converted to USD China enjoys a book surplus of RMB financial assets held by citizens. As of the end of March 2011, Chinas balance of foreign exchange reserves reached USD3.04 trillion. Converted at the end-March 2011 exchange rate, the total scale of RMB financial assets, such as RMB deposits of enterprises and individuals, stocks, treasury bonds, and insurance assets during the corresponding period was more than five times that of Chinas foreign exchange reserve assets. This means that when the RMB appreciates, the book gains of RMB assets is over 5 times the book losses of the foreign exchange reserve assets. Furthermore, the book gains of RMB assets will become more substantial when property assets and other kinds of financial assets held by residents in forms of stocks, bonds, and so on are taken into account. Likewise, in essence the above losses or gains are variations in book values. That means the variations will not be realized as gains or losses if the currency is not exchanges. Third, the effective purchasing power of foreign exchange reserves depends on the yield of foreign exchange reserves and the inflation rate of the countries where the investments are made. China has maintained stable gains from its foreign exchange reserves operations over the years; the yields of operations far exceed the inflation rate of the countries (regions) where investments have been made, such as the U.S., Europe, or Japan, thereby ensuring the effective purchasing power of the foreign exchange reserves. During the 2000-2010 period, the consumer price index (CPI) in the U.S., Europe, and Japan increased at an annual rate of 2.4 percent, 2.1 percent, and -0.2 percent respectively. In the meantime, China has seen a far higher average annual operating yield from its foreign exchange reserves. 2011-05-06/en/2011/0506/995.html
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The SAFE recently released the revised data on China's Balance of Payments Statement for the year 2010, as well as the revised data for each quarter of 2010 according to the latest situation, and the annual data from 2005 to 2009. The current account and the capital and financial account continued to post a "twin surplus" in 2010, and international reserves maintained a growing momentum. The surplus under the current account totaled USD305.4 billion, a rise of 17 percent compared with that in the previous year. Specifically, according to the statistical coverage of the balance of payments, the surpluses in goods, income, and current transfers reached USD254.2 billion, USD30.4 billion, and USD42.9 billion, respectively, whereas the deficit in trade in services amounted to USD22.1 billion. Meanwhile, China's surplus under the capital and financial account totaled USD226 billion, an increase of 25 percent. In particular, net inflows of direct investments, portfolio investments, and other investments amounted to USD124.9 billion, USD24 billion, and USD72.4 billion respectively. International reserves assets posted an increase of USD471.7 billion, a rise of 18 percent. Specifically, transactions in foreign exchange reserves assets registered an increase of USD469.6 billion (exclusive of the influence of changes in value due to non-transaction factors such as exchange rates and prices) and the reserve position in the IMF and special drawing rights registered a total increase of USD2.2 billion. In Q4 of 2010, the surplus under the current account was USD102.1 billion, a rise of 7 percent year on year; the surplus under the capital and financial account totaled USD118.9 billion, an increase of 88 percent; and international reserves assets posted an increase of USD185.7 billion, an increase of 49 percent. In addition, the BOP Analysis Team of the SAFE released the China's Balance of Payments Report for 2010 in order to facilitate understanding among all groups sin society about the data and analysis of China's balance of payments. 2011-04-01/en/2011/0401/989.html
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Initial estimates reveal that in Q1 of 2011 the current account and the capital and financial account (including net errors and omissions) continued to post a surplus and international reserves maintained a growing momentum. In Q1, the surplus under the current account totaled USD29.8 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 18 percent as calculated on a comparable basis (the same below). Specifically, the surpluses in goods, income, and current transfers reached USD20.8 billion, USD7.6 billion, and USD11.6 billion, respectively, whereas the deficit in trade in services amounted to USD10.2 billion. Meanwhile, China's surplus under the capital and financial account (including net errors and omissions) totaled USD111.4 billion. In particular, net inflows of direct investments amounted to USD42.6 billion. International reserve assets posted an increase of USD141.2 billion, a rise of 47 percent. Specifically, transactions in foreign exchange reserve assets registered an increase of USD138 billion (exclusive of the influence of non-transaction changes in value such as exchange rates and prices), the reserve position in the IMF registered an increase of USD3.2 million, and special drawing rights registered a decrease of USD100 million. 2011-05-24/en/2011/0524/996.html
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The SAFE recently released China's International Investment Position for year-end 2010. The statistics reveal that at the end of 2011 China's external financial assets reached USD4126 billion, up 19 percent over that at the end of 2009; external financial liabilities reached USD2335.4 billion, up 20 percent over that at the end of 2009; and external financial net assets reached USD1790.7 billion, up 19 percent over that at the end of 2009. Among the external financial assets, direct investments abroad totaled USD310.8 billion, portfolio investments totaled USD257.1 billion, other investments totaled USD643.9 billion, and reserves assets totaled USD2914.2 billion, accounting for 7 percent, 6 percent, 16 percent, and 71 percent respectively of the external financial assets. In terms of external financial liabilities, foreign direct investments totaled USD1476.4 billion, portfolio investments totaled USD221.6 billion, and other investments totaled USD637.3 billion, accounting for 63 percent, 10 percent, and 27 percent respectively of external financial liabilities. 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 trade flows of the country or region. The SAFE revised its IIP for year-end 2009 according to the latest data. FILE: China's International Investment Position 2011-05-30/en/2011/0530/999.html
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According to statistical data released by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), in May 2011 the amount of foreign exchange settlement and sales on behalf of clients by banks amounted to USD139 billion and USD87.1 billion respectively. The surplus of foreign exchange settlement and sales on behalf of clients by banks amounted to USD51.9 billion. During the first five months of 2011, the accumulated amount of foreign exchange settlement and sales on behalf of clients by banks amounted to USD644.6 billion and USD413.9 billion, respectively. The surplus of foreign exchange settlement and sales was USD230.7 billion. In May 2011, foreign-related receipts and payments by domestic banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD193.2 billion and USD160.3 billion, respectively, and the surplus of foreign-related receipts and payments reached USD32.8 billion. During the first five months of 2011, the accumulated foreign-related receipts and payments by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD875.9 billion and USD742.7 billion, respectively; and the surplus of the accumulated foreign-related receipts and payments reached USD133.2 billion. 2011-06-30/en/2011/0630/1001.html
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According to statistical data released by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), in March 2011 the amount of foreign exchange settlement and sales by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD135.4 billion and USD94.5 billion respectively. The surplus of foreign exchange settlement and sales by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD40.9 billion. For the first three months of 2011, the cumulative amount of foreign exchange settlement and foreign exchange sales by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD375.7 billion and USD241.5 billion respectively. The surplus of foreign exchange settlement and sales was USD134.2 billion. During March 2011 foreign-related receipts and payments by domestic banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD188.4 billion and USD157.7 billion respectively, and the surplus of foreign-related receipts and payments reached USD30.7 billion. For the first three months of 2011, the cumulative foreign-related receipts and payments by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD505 billion and USD429 billion respectively; and the surplus of the cumulative foreign-related receipts and payments reached USD76 billion. 2011-05-03/en/2011/0503/994.html
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According to the statistical data released by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), in February 2011 the amount of foreign exchange settlement and sales by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD90 billion and USD65.1 billion respectively. The surplus of foreign exchange settlement and sales by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD24.9 billion. For the first two months of 2011, the cumulative amount of foreign exchange settlement and sales by banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD240.3 billion and USD147 billion respectively. The surplus of foreign exchange settlement and sales was USD93.3 billion. In February 2011, foreign-related receipts and payments of domestic banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD129.9 billion and USD120.6 billion respectively; and the surplus of foreign-related receipts and payments reached USD9.3 billion. For the first two months of 2011, the cumulative foreign-related receipts and payments of banks on behalf of clients amounted to USD316.6 billion and USD271.3 billion respectively; and the surplus of the cumulative foreign-related receipts and payments reached USD45.3 billion. 2011-04-13/en/2011/0413/991.html