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This section provides information on balance of payments (b.o.p.) statistics. The euro area b.o.p. is compiled by the ECB on both a monthly and a quarterly basis. Recent monthly statistics should be regarded as provisional. Data are revised when figures for the following month and/or detailed quarterly b.o.p. data are published. Earlier statistics are revised periodically or as a result of methodological changes in the compilation of source data. The monetary presentation of the b.o.p. provides a link between the external transactions of euro area non-MFIs and money supply in the euro area.
Get the latest available data presented in the format of the Monthly Bulletin tables.
Until 2014, statistics relating to the euro area’s b.o.p., international investment position (i.i.p.) and international reserves template will be compiled in accordance with ECB Guideline ECB/2004/15.
The concepts and definitions used in b.o.p. and i.i.p. statistics are generally in line with the IMF’s Balance of Payments Manual (fifth edition, October 1993), the reference manual for the compilation of balance of payments statistics worldwide. The ECB’s reporting requirements in the field of b.o.p., i.i.p. and international reserves statistics are laid down in Guideline ECB/2004/15, which is addressed to the national central banks of the euro area, as amended by Guideline ECB/2007/3. Additional information on the methodologies and sources used in the euro area’s b.o.p. and i.i.p. statistics can be found in the ECB publication “European Union balance of payments/international investment position statistical methods” [2.91 MB] .
Data for the current account are seasonally adjusted. Where appropriate, data are also adjusted to take account of working day effects, as well as the impact of leap years and Easter.
The monetary presentation of the b.o.p. mirrors transactions in the external counterpart of M3. The data follow the sign conventions employed in the b.o.p., with the exception of transactions in the external counterpart of M3 derived from monetary statistics, where a positive sign denotes an increase in assets or a decrease in liabilities. As regards portfolio investment liabilities, b.o.p. transactions include sales and purchases of equity and debt securities issued by MFIs, with the exception of money market fund shares/units and debt securities issued by MFIs with a maturity of up to two years.
