Baku, Azerbaijan, May 11
By Fakhri Vakilov – Trend:
The current account of the balance of payments in the first quarter of 2019 was a surplus amounting to $0.8 billion compared with a deficit of $0.9 billion in the first quarter of 2018, Trend reports with reference to the press-service of the National Bank of Kazakhstan.
The positive change in the current account was achieved due to an increase in the trade surplus, which, according to preliminary data, amounted to $7.1 billion, having increased by 14.4 percent.
Exports of goods increased by 9.9 percent and amounted to $15 billion, while imports grew by 6.1 percent to $7.8 billion.
In turn, revenues of foreign direct investors in Kazakhstan declined by 16.9 percent to $4.8 billion. More than half of the income of non-residents from direct investments was directed to the financing of Kazakhstan subsidiaries.
The financial account (with the exception of the operations with reserve assets of the National Bank), according to preliminary data, was formed with a positive balance of $3.2 billion, which is mainly due to the growth of residents' external assets.
For foreign direct investment (FDI), net capital inflows amounted to $ 2.4 billion. The capital inflow was secured by the repayment of the debt obligations by foreign affiliated companies to Kazakhstan enterprises and the reinvestment of incomes of non-residents.
For portfolio investments, net capital outflows amounted to $4.8 billion, mainly due to the growth of residents' foreign assets and the reduction of liabilities of residents as a result of their redemption of previously issued Eurobonds.
Purchases by non-residents on the secondary market of short-term notes of the National Bank partially compensated for the outflow of capital on portfolio investments.
Reserve assets (excluding assets of the National Fund of Kazakhstan) as of April 1, 2019 were estimated at $ 27.0 billion.
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