The nation recorded a surplus of NT$129.64 billion (US$4.19 billion) in the balance of payments last quarter on the back of improved exports, although local residents continued to increase holdings in overseas investment tools, the central bank said in a report yesterday.
The figures represented a slowdown from US$4.39 billion in the second quarter, but a steep advance from US$2.61 billion a year earlier, the report found, as economic performance at home and in main trading partners improved this year.
The balance of payments, which includes the current, financial and capital accounts, captures the amount of money paid or received by Taiwan for trade goods and services.
The current account posted a surplus of US$15.8 billion during the July-to-September period, the fourth-highest level in history and accelerating from US$14.9 billion a year earlier, central bank Economic Research Department Deputy Director Lin Shu-hua (林淑華) told a media briefing.
Lin attributed the expansion to increased exports of electronic devices and services last quarter, which outpaced the increase in imports of raw materials and capital equipment during the same period.
Both service revenues and expenses rose to new highs of US$14.5 billion and US$12.13 billion respectively last quarter, as firms shifted focus to bolstering profits, the report indicated.
However, Taiwanese financial institutions and residents wired more money abroad in the pursuit of higher investment returns, as evidenced by extended fund outflows, the report said.
With a loss of US$11.48 billion, the financial account reported a net deficit for the 17th consecutive quarter last quarter — the longest stretch of fund outflow in the nation’s history — as a result of rising overseas investments by domestic investors, the report found.
Lin said it is not uncommon for nations with current account surpluses to see financial account deficits in order to better utilize idle money, as is the case with Singapore, South Korea, Germany and Russia.
Taiwanese investors increased portfolio investments that climbed to a record US$23.5 billion last quarter, spiking from US$8.24 billion a year ago, the report said. Typically, foreign investment products generate better yields and offer better risk diversification, officials and analysts have said.
For the first three quarters of the year, the balance of payments registered a surplus of US$11.2 billion, with current accounts surpluses of US$47.76 billion exceeding US$35.1 billion in financial account deficits, the report said.
However, the latest payment showing failed to shore up the local currency, which weakened 0.45 percent to NT$31.015 against the US dollar in Taipei trading yesterday, central bank data showed.
The depreciation came as the yen dropped 1.02 percent and the South Korean won shed 0.79 percent against the US dollar, according to the central bank’s tallies.
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