The Balance of Payments and International Investment Position of Spain in 2016

Abstract

According to the balance of payments (BoP) statistics, in 2016 the Spanish economy once again became a net lender. The increase in the current account balance mainly reflected the decline in the trade deficit, driven by the decrease in the energy bill and the increase in the services balance surplus. The Spanish economy’s net debtor international investment position (IIP), in GDP terms, decreased in 2016 for the second consecutive year, since the nation’s net lending and the growth of GDP counteracted the slight negative impact of valuation effects and other adjustments on this indicator