PCBS, PMA: Net Stock of International Investment Position amounted to over $3 billion at the end of Q4 of 2022

The Net Stock of the International Investment Position (IIP) amounted to over $3 billion at end of the fourth quarter of 2022, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) and the Palestine Monetary Authority (PMA).

In a press statement on the preliminary results of IIP and External Debt statistics for Palestine as of the end of the fourth quarter 2022, PCBS and PMA said that the total stocks of External Assets for the Palestinian economy amounted to USD 9,461 million, the Foreign Direct Investment Abroad contributed to 3%, and Portfolio Investments abroad reached 17%, while Other Foreign Investments Abroad reached 70% and Reserve Assets amounted to 10%.

The results show that the total stocks of Foreign Liabilities in Palestine (Balances of non-residents invested in Palestine) amounted to USD 6,100 million, where Foreign Direct Investment in Palestine contributed to 51%, Portfolio Investments in Palestine reached 14%, and Other Investments in Palestine (mainly loans and deposits from abroad) amounted to 35%.

At the sectoral level, foreign investments in the banking sector contributed a major value in the foreign liabilities, represented by 35% of the total value of foreign liabilities in the Palestinian economy.

The results also show that the Gross External Debt Stock on the Palestinian economic sectors reached USD 2,191 million, and decreased by 1% compared with the previous quarter. On the other hand, the government’s external debt increased by 2% to reach about $1.3 billion at the end of the fourth quarter of 2022. The Stock of external debt has been distributed between debt on the general government sector, which represented 59%, while debt on the banking sector (deposits of non-residents in banks operating in Palestine) reached 34%, debt on other sectors (non-banking financial institutions, non-financial corporations, NGOs, and household sector) amounted to 5%,and the lending between affiliated companies reached 2%.

The International Investment Position(IIP) is a statistical record of the investments stocks for the residents in Palestine (individuals, institutions, and government)invested in the rest of the world (abroad) under the name of (assets), compared with the investments stocks owned by residents outside Palestine (individuals, institutions, and government)invested in Palestine under the name of (liabilities).

The Balance of Payments Manual – fifth edition, issued by the International Monetary Fund in 1993, divides the assets and liabilities into direct investment (investment by 10% and more in the non-resident capital). Portfolio investment (investment less than 10% in the non-resident capital as well as investment in bonds), and other investments (includes stocks of trade credit, loans, currency and deposits, and any other assets or liabilities).In addition to the Reserve Assets, i.e. Stocks held by the Central Banks/ Monetary Authorities to address the imbalances in the balance of payments. It is worth mentioning that the reserve assets are only included on the asset side.

The External Debt is a statistical record of the debt stocks on Palestinian economic sectors due to non-residents. These include (loans from non-residents, deposits of non-residents deposited in the banks operating in Palestine, the Palestinian bonds purchased by non-residents, and debt transactions between the non-resident enterprises and fellow enterprises in Palestine. They encompass as well any other liabilities in the Palestinian economy) the data of external debt have been extracted from the liabilities side in the international investment position matrix (debt items). Compiling and disseminating the data based on (The External Debt Statistics Manual) issued by IMF in 2003, which is harmonized with the fifth edition of the Balance of Payments Manual.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency