The Portuguese economy presented an external surplus of 5,658 million euros until August, a drop of 21.7% compared to the same period last year, according to data released today by the Bank of Portugal (BdP).
According to data published today by the central bank, despite the year-on-year decrease of around 1,560 million euros, this corresponded, “in nominal terms, to the second highest surplus in the entire series”.
Compared to the amount accumulated up to July, this surplus grew by 1,593 million euros (39.2%).
This variation since the beginning of the year was contributed by the increase of around 3,000 million euros in the goods balance deficit, aggravated both by the growth in imports (plus 2,400 million euros) and the decrease in exports (-600 million euros).
At the same time, the surplus in the secondary income balance, mainly due to the increase in Portugal’s contribution to the European Union (EU), decreased by 369 million euros.
Until August, the services balance surplus grew by around 1,200 million euros, “mainly justified by the evolution of the travel and tourism balance (+879 million euros)”.
The financial balance thus had, until August of this year, a balance of 6,100 million euros, resulting from the financing capacity of the Portuguese economy.
According to the regulator, non-monetary financial institutions, except insurance companies and pension funds, were the sector that contributed most to this balance, largely due to the reduction in liabilities in capital and debt securities by non-residents.
Public administrations also showed “a significant increase in liquid assets, through the increase in assets in deposits”.
Conversely, the ‘central bank’ sector was the one that saw the greatest reduction in net assets abroad, given the increase in deposit liabilities.
In August, the surplus of almost 1,600 million euros compares with a surplus of close to 1,800 million euros in the same month of the previous year.
For this reduction, the BdP points to an increase of 213 million euros in the goods account deficit (a reduction of 332 million euros in exports and 119 million euros in imports), a decrease of 157 million euros in the capital account surplus and a decrease of 130 million euros in the primary income balance deficit.