Balance of payments – commentary

April 2024

The current account surplus amounted to CZK 27.9 billion in April. The goods and services balance ended in a surplus of CZK 50.8 billion. Direct investment dividends totalling CZK 5.3 billion were recorded on the debit side of the primary income balance. Income and capital transfers included a surplus of CZK 22.1 billion vis-à-vis EU institutions.

Current account
(CZK billions)

Net capital outflows on the financial account (net lending) reached CZK 9.8 billion in February, amid a faster decrease in liabilities (CZK 10.9 billion) than in assets (CZK 1.1 billion) vis-à-vis the rest of the world. The net capital inflow within foreign direct investment was CZK 8.3 billion. Portfolio investment recorded a net capital outflow of CZK 44.6 billion. The portfolio investment outflow was due mainly to a decline in non-residents’ holdings of securities issued by general government (CZK 24.8 billion) and conversely an increase in domestic banks’ holdings of securities issued by non-residents (CZK 12.4 billion).

Direct and portfolio investment
(CZK billions)

Other investment recorded a net inflow of capital of CZK 25.2 billion which was associated mainly with a drop in assets (CZK 24.9 billion) amid slight growth in liabilities (CZK 0.3 billion). The drop in assets was due chiefly to falling deposits of domestic banks with non-residents (CZK 47.9 billion), partly offset by a rise in deposits of other sectors with non-residents (CZK 13.1 billion) and growth in banking sector loans to non-residents (CZK 11.3 billion).  On the liabilities side, a decrease in the central bank’s debtor position vis-à-vis non-residents was recorded (CZK 17.5 billion), partly offset mainly by a rise in liabilities of domestic commercial banks to non-residents (CZK 14.9). International reserves picked up by CZK 2.2 billion in April owing to financial transactions.