Today, the Ministry of Economy and Labour released the 2022 Q4 Balance of Payments & International Investment Position publication from the Department of Statistics.
The Minister explained, “Bermuda’s trade with non-residents resulted in a $161 million surplus for the fourth quarter of 2022, down $64 million from a year ago.
“Transactions related to trade in goods led to a broader deficit on the goods account, increasing by $25 million to $324 million. Higher imports were mainly associated with food, beverages, tobacco, and finished equipment.
Minister Hayward added, “Services transactions realised a surplus of $45 million, narrowing $43 million year-over-year. The decrease in the surplus balance reflected declines in the business services account and transportation account balance. The surplus on Bermuda’s primary income account rose by $12 million to $494 million, due mainly to an increase in net employee compensation.
The Minister continued, “Bermuda’s trade in financial assets and liabilities with the rest of the world resulted in a net international investment position of $4.3 billion at the end of the fourth quarter of 2022. This balance increased by $569 million over the third quarter of 2022 due to decreased liabilities of portfolio investments, specifically debt securities. Two of the four institutional sectors recorded positive balances on their net international investment positions at the end of the fourth quarter. Specifically, financial corporations recorded a balance of $6.7 billion, and non-profit institutions recorded a balance of $28 million. In contrast, non-financial corporations recorded a deficit balance of $2.0 billion. The government sector recorded a deficit balance of $415 million due to a decline in portfolio investment liabilities and an increase in portfolio investment assets.”
The 2022 Q4 Balance of Payments & International Investment Position publication is available online at https://www.gov.bm/balance-payments. The public is advised to read the definitions and notes on the last two pages of the publication before reviewing the data.