A joint report by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) and the Palestine Monetary Authority (PMA) announcing the preliminary results of the International Investment Position (IIP) and External Debt Statistics for Palestine as of the end of the first quarter 2023 said that the total stocks of external assets for the Palestinian economy amounted to $9,741 million, the foreign direct investment abroad contributed to 3%, and portfolio investments abroad reached 17%, while other foreign investments abroad reached 68% and reserve assets amounted to 12%. They said that the total stocks of foreign liabilities in Palestine (balances of non-residents invested in Palestine) amounted to $6,414 million, where foreign direct investment in Palestine contributed to 53%, portfolio investments in Palestine reached 14%, and other investments in Palestine (mainly loans and deposits from abroad) amounted to 33%. At the sectoral level, foreign investments in the banking sector contributed a major value in the foreign liabilities, represented by 37% of the total value of foreign liabilities in the Palestinian economy. The Gross External Debt Stock in the Palestinian economic sectors reached $2,171 million, a decrease of 1% compared with the previous quarter. The decline was concentrated in the banking sector by about 2%, while the government’s external debt remained stable at about $1.3 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2023. The Stock of external debt, distributed between debt in the general government sector, represented 60%, while debt in the banking sector (deposits of non-residents in banks operating in Palestine) reached 33%, debt in other sectors (non-banking financial institutions, non-financial corporations, NGOs, and household sector) amounted to 5%, and the lending between affiliated companies reached 2%.
Source: En – Palestine news & Information Agency – WAFA