Monthly developments in November 1999
In addition to the balance of payments (b.o.p.) monthly key items for November, this release incorporates a revised and more detailed set of b.o.p. statistics for the third quarter of 1999. The quarterly statistics for the third quarter of 1999 include a breakdown of the income item of the current account and additional information on sectors and instruments for the b.o.p. financial account. The full set of revised data will be shown in the February issue of the . Exports of goods continued to grow strongly in November, rising by EUR 9.2 billion, as compared with the same month in 1998 (from ECU 64.4 billion to EUR 73.6 billion), as a result of both expanding foreign demand and improvements in the price competitiveness of the euro area. Imports grew by EUR 11 billion in November, as compared with the same month a year earlier (from ECU 54.2 billion to EUR 65.2 billion), contributing to a cumulative decline of EUR 17 billion in the goods surplus for the first eleven months of 1999, compared with the same period in 1998. The sustained increase in imports of goods appears largely to reflect the sharp rise in import prices during 1999, owing to higher oil prices and the decline of the euro. Turning to the financial account, net direct investment outflows amounted to EUR 17.5 billion in November. Between January and November 1999 net direct investment outflows totalled EUR 120.6 billion, substantially more than the ECU 99.4 billion recorded in the same period of 1998. The figures for the first eleven months of 1999 reflect both higher direct investment abroad by euro area residents and lower foreign direct investment in the euro area. The sectoral breakdown of portfolio investment asset flows, which is now available for the third quarter of 1999, shows that most of the net purchases abroad recorded in this item were carried out by investors outside the MFI and general government sectors. Errors and omissions amounted to a negative EUR 2.6 billion in November and a positive EUR 5.8 billion for the first eleven months of 1999.
en ECB Monthly Bulletin In the light of new information, the ECB has revised the b.o.p monthly key items for the third quarter of 1999 (Annexes 2 and 3). Revisions for the third quarter left the current account surplus broadly unchanged, despite amended balances in the individual categories. Compared with previous figures, the revisions resulted in smaller deficits for services and income, which were broadly offset by a larger deficit for current transfers and a slightly smaller surplus for trade in goods. The financial account for the third quarter of 1999 was revised from minus EUR 3.4 billion to minus EUR 6.7 billion, as a result of relatively limited revisions in most sub-accounts.) contains statistics produced by the Eurosystem in respect of the balance of payments (b.o.p.) of the euro area; the methodology has been set up in close co-operation with the European Commission (Eurostat) which publishes the b.o.p. for the European Union. The ECB compiles these statistics on the basis of the data on extra-euro area transactions reported by euro area countries. The results for November 1999 will also be published in the February 2000 issue of the . A detailed methodological note on euro area b.o.p. statistics is available on the ECB's Web site.
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