Amid a rebound in exports and foreign capital inflows, Taiwan’s balance of payments surplus stood at a record US$17.66 billion in the fourth quarter last year, with the current account surplus rising to US$11.81 billion, the central bank said yesterday.
Boosted by a recovering global economy and a lower base effect, exports and imports rose 17.3 percent and 17.2 percent respectively from a year earlier, which reversed the previous contraction, the central bank said.
“Of current accounts, the services account surplus rose US$470 million on a yearly basis,” Chen E-dawn (陳一端), deputy chief of the central bank’s economic research department, told a media briefing.
Chen attributed the increase in services account surplus to growth in net income from merchanting services and travel receipts.
“Tourism revenue rose 17.2 percent from a year earlier to US$6.59 billion last year,” she said.
The balance of payments — including current account, financial account and capital account — summarizes a nation’s economic transactions with the rest of the world during a time period.
In terms of the financial account, direct and portfolio investment exhibited a net outflow of US$890 million and US$4.12 billion respectively, the result of more bond investments abroad by local insurance firms and an increase in residents’ investment in foreign mutual funds, she said.
For the full year, Taiwan had a surplus of US$54.13 billion in its balance of payments, the largest amount on record and an increase in the central bank’s reserve assets.
The current account also posted a record surplus of US$42.57 billion last year, while the financial account exhibited a net inflow of US$13.98 billion, the highest amount on record, central bank data showed.
Chen said the inflow of US$13.98 billion in the financial account last year was a result of a net inflow of US$25.76 in investment assets, including government, banking and private sector assets.
“As the nation emerged from the financial crisis, local banks reduced their short-term overseas lending and private sectors wired back their deposits to Taiwan,” she said.
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