Today, the Ministry of Economy and Labour, the Hon. Jason Hayward, JP, MP, released the 2021 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 $217 million surplus for the fourth quarter of 2021, increasing $6 million from a year ago.

“Transactions related to trade in goods led to a wider deficit on the goods account, increasing by $48 million to $298 million. Higher imports were associated mainly with fuel.

Minister Hayward added, “Services transactions realised a surplus of $101 million, rising $41 million year-over-year. Improvements were recorded on the travel account and the business services account related to legal, accounting and insurance services. The surplus on Bermuda’s primary income account rose by $12 million to $467 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 $4.6 billion at the end of the fourth quarter of 2021. This balance increased by $55 million over the third quarter of 2021 due to a fall in liabilities associated with currency and deposit holdings. 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 $6.5 billion, and non-profit institutions recorded a balance of $38 million. In contrast, non-financial corporations recorded a deficit balance of $1.9 billion while the government sector recorded a deficit balance of $5 million, which improved due to a rise in portfolio investment assets.”

The 2021 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 concepts and definitions on the last page of the publication prior to reviewing the data.