U.S. International Transactions

Second Quarter 2022

By Mai-Chi Hoang and Rudy Telles Jr.  |  Volume 102, Number 10  |  October 19, 2022

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The U.S. current-account deficit, which reflects the combined balances on trade in goods and services and income flows between U.S. residents and residents of other countries, narrowed by $31.5 billion, or 11.1 percent, to $251.1 billion in the second quarter of 2022 (chart 1 and table A). The revised first-quarter deficit was $282.5 billion.

The second-quarter deficit was 4.0 percent of current-dollar gross domestic product, down from 4.6 percent in the first quarter.

The $31.5 billion narrowing of the current-account deficit in the second quarter mostly reflected a decreased deficit on goods.

Chart 1. U.S. Current-Account Balance and Its Components

[Click chart to expand]

Table A. U.S. International Transactions
[Millions of dollars, seasonally adjusted]
Series 2021 2022 Change 2022:Q1 to 2022:Q2
Q3 Q4 Q1 r Q2 p
Current account          
Exports of goods and services and income receipts (credits) 952,285 1,001,171 1,025,046 1,107,837 82,791
Exports of goods and services 641,582 686,479 704,728 765,107 60,379
Goods 441,893 473,521 487,899 539,866 51,967
Services 199,688 212,959 216,829 225,240 8,411
Primary income receipts 267,976 271,520 278,059 299,119 21,060
Secondary income (current transfer) receipts 42,727 43,173 42,259 43,611 1,352
Imports of goods and services and income payments (debits) 1,178,660 1,226,009 1,307,586 1,358,927 51,341
Imports of goods and services 860,724 911,479 987,479 1,018,546 31,067
Goods 714,472 758,540 829,575 850,396 20,821
Services 146,251 152,939 157,904 168,151 10,247
Primary income payments 234,408 234,527 239,239 255,475 16,236
Secondary income (current transfer) payments 83,528 80,003 80,867 84,906 4,039
Capital account          
Capital transfer receipts and other credits 3,819 13 28 7 −21
Capital transfer payments and other debits 828 1,857 1,916 3,813 1,897
Financial account          
Net U.S. acquisition of financial assets excluding financial derivatives (net increase in assets / financial outflow (+)) 466,485 49,404 414,584 386,235 −28,349
Direct investment assets 87,710 64,912 134,008 99,122 −34,886
Portfolio investment assets 305,649 −106,715 227,966 279,806 51,840
Other investment assets −39,476 88,194 51,678 6,127 −45,551
Reserve assets 112,603 3,013 932 1,181 249
Net U.S. incurrence of liabilities excluding financial derivatives (net increase in liabilities / financial inflow (+)) 676,601 230,257 656,055 499,848 −156,207
Direct investment liabilities 161,484 97,255 125,653 67,028 −58,625
Portfolio investment liabilities 200,804 −61,631 246,077 433,482 187,405
Other investment liabilities 314,312 194,633 284,325 −661 −284,986
Financial derivatives other than reserves, net transactions −7,980 −23,095 5,762 −45,911 −51,673
Statistical discrepancy          
Statistical discrepancy1 5,289 22,734 48,718 95,372 46,654
Balances          
Balance on current account −226,375 −224,837 −282,540 −251,090 31,450
Balance on goods and services −219,142 −225,000 −282,751 −253,440 29,311
Balance on goods −272,579 −285,019 −341,676 −310,529 31,147
Balance on services 53,437 60,020 58,925 57,090 −1,835
Balance on primary income 33,568 36,993 38,819 43,644 4,825
Balance on secondary income −40,800 −36,831 −38,608 −41,295 −2,687
Balance on capital account 2,990 −1,844 −1,888 −3,806 −1,918
Net lending (+) or net borrowing (−) from current- and capital-account transactions2 −223,384 −226,681 −284,428 −254,896 29,532
Net lending (+) or net borrowing (−) from financial-account transactions3 −218,096 −203,948 −235,710 −159,524 76,186
p
Preliminary
r
Revised
  1. The statistical discrepancy is the difference between net acquisition of financial assets and net incurrence of liabilities in the financial account (including financial derivatives) less the difference between total credits and total debits recorded in the current and capital accounts.
  2. Sum of current- and capital-account balances.
  3. Sum of net U.S. acquisition of financial assets and net transactions in financial derivatives less net U.S. incurrence of liabilities.

Note. The statistics are presented in International Transactions Accounts table 1.2 on BEA's website.

Exports of goods and services to, and income received from, foreign residents increased $82.8 billion to $1.11 trillion in the second quarter (charts 2 and 3 and tables A and B). Imports of goods and services from, and income paid to, foreign residents increased $51.3 billion to $1.36 trillion (charts 2 and 4 and tables A and C).

Chart 2. Current-Account Transactions

[Click chart to expand]

Trade in goods

Exports of goods increased $52.0 billion to $539.9 billion, and imports of goods increased $20.8 billion to $850.4 billion. The increases in both exports and imports mostly reflected an increase in industrial supplies and materials, primarily petroleum and products.

Trade in services

Exports of services increased $8.4 billion to $225.2 billion, and imports of services increased $10.2 billion to $168.2 billion. The increases in both exports and imports mainly reflected increases in travel, mostly other personal travel, and in transport, mostly air passenger transport.

Primary income

Receipts of primary income increased $21.1 billion to $299.1 billion, and payments of primary income increased $16.2 billion to $255.5 billion. The increases in both receipts and payments reflected increases in all major components. The increase in receipts was led by direct investment income, primarily earnings, and the increase in payments was led by other investment income, primarily interest.

Secondary income

Receipts of secondary income increased $1.4 billion to $43.6 billion, mostly reflecting an increase in general government transfers, primarily fines and penalties. Payments of secondary income increased $4.0 billion to $84.9 billion, reflecting increases in general government transfers, mostly international cooperation, and in private transfers, mostly insurance-related transfers.

Chart 3. Percent Change in Exports of Goods and Services and Income Receipts

[Click chart to expand]

Chart 4. Percent Change in Imports of Goods and Services and Income Payments

[Click chart to expand]

Table B. Exports of Goods and Services and Income Receipts
[Millions of dollars, seasonally adjusted]
Series 2021 2022 Change 2022:Q1 to 2022:Q2
Q3 Q4 Q1 r Q2 p
Exports of goods and services and income receipts 952,285 1,001,171 1,025,046 1,107,837 82,791
Exports of goods 441,893 473,521 487,899 539,866 51,967
General merchandise 434,603 466,835 481,727 530,186 48,459
Foods, feeds, and beverages 38,432 44,085 44,326 50,310 5,984
Industrial supplies and materials 158,428 171,104 184,174 218,072 33,898
Energy products 68,286 79,352 87,102 116,562 29,460
Of which: Petroleum and products 53,070 62,146 70,824 90,428 19,604
Nonenergy products 90,142 91,752 97,072 101,510 4,438
Capital goods except automotive 130,800 134,784 138,700 140,858 2,158
Automotive vehicles, parts, and engines 34,398 37,131 37,564 39,271 1,707
Consumer goods except food and automotive 57,671 63,305 59,547 62,928 3,381
Other general merchandise 14,874 16,427 17,415 18,746 1,331
Net exports of goods under merchanting 234 175 245 232 −13
Nonmonetary gold 7,056 6,510 5,928 9,449 3,521
Exports of services1 199,688 212,959 216,829 225,240 8,411
Manufacturing services on physical inputs owned by others n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Maintenance and repair services n.i.e. 3,302 3,146 3,212 3,575 363
Transport 16,508 18,969 20,019 22,115 2,096
Travel (for all purposes including education) 17,412 23,856 25,468 32,944 7,476
Business 3,333 4,583 4,986 6,971 1,985
Personal 14,079 19,274 20,482 25,973 5,491
Construction 825 860 410 462 52
Insurance services 5,905 6,012 5,181 5,222 41
Financial services 43,442 43,714 41,518 41,853 335
Charges for the use of intellectual property n.i.e. 31,080 32,646 31,583 31,654 71
Telecommunications, computer, and information services 14,696 16,044 16,254 15,508 −746
Other business services 54,829 55,708 59,220 59,155 −65
Personal, cultural, and recreational services 5,970 5,912 6,040 7,208 1,168
Government goods and services n.i.e. 5,720 6,091 7,924 5,544 −2,380
Primary income receipts 267,976 271,520 278,059 299,119 21,060
Investment income 266,244 269,774 276,301 297,351 21,050
Direct investment income 147,463 145,836 146,562 158,254 11,692
Income on equity 143,856 142,309 143,147 154,527 11,380
Dividends and withdrawals 74,744 37,632 92,100 89,659 −2,441
Reinvested earnings 69,112 104,676 51,046 64,868 13,822
Interest 3,607 3,527 3,416 3,727 311
Portfolio investment income 104,031 108,943 115,345 120,296 4,951
Income on equity and investment fund shares 69,840 73,342 76,776 79,428 2,652
Interest on debt securities 34,191 35,601 38,569 40,868 2,299
Other investment income 14,980 14,961 14,311 18,527 4,216
Reserve asset income −231 35 83 273 190
Compensation of employees 1,732 1,746 1,758 1,768 10
Secondary income (current transfer) receipts2 42,727 43,173 42,259 43,611 1,352
p
Preliminary
r
Revised
n.a.
Not available
n.i.e.
Not included elsewhere
  1. See also International Services table 2.1.
  2. Secondary income (current transfer) receipts include U.S. government and private transfers, such as fines and penalties, withholding taxes, insurance-related transfers, and other current transfers.

Note. The statistics are presented in International Transactions Accounts table 1.2, table 2.1, table 3.1, table 4.1, and table 5.1 on BEA's website.

Table C. Imports of Goods and Services and Income Payments
[Millions of dollars, seasonally adjusted]
Series 2021 2022 Change 2022:Q1 to 2022:Q2
Q3 Q4 Q1 r Q2 p
Imports of goods and services and income payments 1,178,660 1,226,009 1,307,586 1,358,927 51,341
Imports of goods 714,472 758,540 829,575 850,396 20,821
General merchandise 709,165 751,544 818,169 844,473 26,304
Foods, feeds, and beverages 47,169 48,452 52,067 54,695 2,628
Industrial supplies and materials 168,378 180,547 197,086 217,188 20,102
Energy products 63,162 69,555 78,292 93,466 15,174
Of which: Petroleum and products 57,674 63,684 71,110 85,078 13,968
Nonenergy products 105,216 110,992 118,794 123,722 4,928
Capital goods except automotive 192,318 199,334 214,988 216,562 1,574
Automotive vehicles, parts, and engines 83,781 86,467 94,813 99,425 4,612
Consumer goods except food and automotive 186,690 202,203 228,146 226,928 −1,218
Other general merchandise 30,829 34,541 31,070 29,676 −1,394
Nonmonetary gold 5,307 6,996 11,406 5,923 −5,483
Imports of services1 146,251 152,939 157,904 168,151 10,247
Manufacturing services on physical inputs owned by others n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Maintenance and repair services n.i.e. 1,991 2,020 2,010 1,969 −41
Transport 28,610 31,403 35,666 40,964 5,298
Travel (for all purposes including education) 17,286 19,840 20,474 27,395 6,921
Business 1,861 2,047 1,973 3,416 1,443
Personal 15,425 17,794 18,501 23,979 5,478
Construction 327 448 359 378 19
Insurance services 15,294 15,646 13,807 13,978 171
Financial services 12,732 13,546 12,639 12,599 −40
Charges for the use of intellectual property n.i.e. 11,976 10,966 14,375 10,851 −3,524
Telecommunications, computer, and information services 10,609 11,438 11,693 12,011 318
Other business services 34,016 34,047 33,479 34,532 1,053
Personal, cultural, and recreational services 7,086 7,300 7,079 7,108 29
Government goods and services n.i.e. 6,325 6,284 6,323 6,366 43
Primary income payments 234,408 234,527 239,239 255,475 16,236
Investment income 229,864 229,966 234,040 250,238 16,198
Direct investment income 80,487 78,483 75,242 79,609 4,367
Portfolio investment income 131,247 133,377 141,233 146,933 5,700
Income on equity and investment fund shares 47,072 48,228 52,088 55,158 3,070
Interest on debt securities 84,175 85,149 89,145 91,775 2,630
Other investment income 18,130 18,105 17,565 23,696 6,131
Compensation of employees 4,544 4,561 5,199 5,237 38
Secondary income (current transfer) payments2 83,528 80,003 80,867 84,906 4,039
Supplemental detail on insurance transactions:          
Premiums paid 39,023 40,097 36,019 37,028 1,009
Losses recovered 29,480 25,407 25,088 24,963 −125
p
Preliminary
r
Revised
n.a.
Not available
n.i.e.
Not included elsewhere
  1. See also International Services table 2.1.
  2. Secondary income (current transfer) receipts include U.S. government and private transfers, such as fines and penalties, withholding taxes, insurance-related transfers, and other current transfers.

Note. The statistics are presented in International Transactions Accounts table 1.2, table 2.1, table 3.1, table 4.1, and table 5.1 on BEA's website.

Capital-transfer payments increased $1.9 billion to $3.8 billion in the second quarter, mostly reflecting an increase in U.S. government investment grants (table A).

Net financial-account transactions were −$159.5 billion in the second quarter, reflecting net U.S. borrowing from foreign residents.

Financial assets

Second-quarter transactions increased U.S. residents' foreign financial assets by $386.2 billion (charts 5 and 6 and table D). Transactions increased portfolio investment assets, mostly equity, by $279.8 billion; direct investment assets, mostly equity, by $99.1 billion; other investment assets by $6.1 billion, resulting from partly offsetting transactions in loans and deposits; and reserve assets by $1.2 billion.

Liabilities

Second-quarter transactions increased U.S. liabilities to foreign residents by $499.8 billion. Transactions increased portfolio investment liabilities, primarily long-term debt securities and equity, by $433.5 billion, and direct investment liabilities, primarily equity, by $67.0 billion. Transactions decreased other investment liabilities by $0.7 billion, primarily resulting from offsetting transactions in loans, deposits, and trade credit and advances.

Financial derivatives

Net transactions in financial derivatives were −$45.9 billion in the second quarter, reflecting net U.S. borrowing from foreign residents.

Chart 5. Acquisition of Financial Assets and Incurrence of Liabilities Excluding Financial Derivatives

[Click chart to expand]

Chart 6. Transactions in Financial Assets and Liabilities Excluding Financial Derivatives

[Click chart to expand]

Table D. Net U.S. Acquisition of Financial Assets and Net U.S. Incurrence of Liabilities
[Millions of dollars, seasonally adjusted]
Series 2021 2022 Change 2022:Q1 to 2022:Q2
Q3 Q4 Q1 r Q2 p
Net U.S. acquisition of financial assets excluding financial derivatives (net increase in assets / financial outflow (+)) 466,485 49,404 414,584 386,235 −28,349
Direct investment assets 87,710 64,912 134,008 99,122 −34,886
Equity 70,211 142,683 126,235 77,021 −49,214
Equity other than reinvestment of earnings 1,099 38,007 75,189 12,153 −63,036
Reinvestment of earnings 69,112 104,676 51,046 64,868 13,822
Debt instruments 17,498 −77,771 7,773 22,101 14,328
Portfolio investment assets 305,649 −106,715 227,966 279,806 51,840
Equity and investment fund shares 112,252 −153,474 113,208 239,490 126,282
Debt securities 193,397 46,759 114,759 40,316 −74,443
Short-term securities 3,280 −49,821 −60,384 −29,325 31,059
Long-term corporate securities 144,071 67,355 132,144 53,343 −78,801
Other long-term securities 46,046 29,225 42,999 16,298 −26,701
Other investment assets −39,476 88,194 51,678 6,127 −45,551
Other equity 37 0 0 0 0
Currency and deposits −36,617 76,553 29,188 −13,505 −42,693
Loans −2,378 10,079 28,703 19,301 −9,402
Trade credit and advances −518 1,563 −6,213 331 6,544
Reserve assets 112,603 3,013 932 1,181 249
Monetary gold 0 0 0 0 0
Special drawing rights 112,838 835 1,517 1,521 4
Reserve position in the International Monetary Fund 11 2,169 −596 −366 230
Other reserve assets −247 9 11 26 15
Net U.S. incurrence of liabilities excluding financial derivatives (net increase in liabilities / financial inflow (+)) 676,601 230,257 656,055 499,848 −156,207
Direct investment liabilities 161,484 97,255 125,653 67,028 −58,625
Equity 116,731 102,069 74,242 76,379 2,137
Equity other than reinvestment of earnings 58,951 45,554 24,310 18,573 −5,737
Reinvestment of earnings 57,779 56,515 49,932 57,806 7,874
Debt instruments 44,754 −4,814 51,411 −9,352 −60,763
Portfolio investment liabilities 200,804 −61,631 246,077 433,482 187,405
Equity and investment fund shares 129,615 −279,938 −130,365 265,461 395,826
Debt securities 71,189 218,307 376,442 168,021 −208,421
Short-term securities 7,882 53,110 76,997 −105,162 −182,159
Treasury bills and certificates −2,765 59,028 20,988 −113,904 −134,892
Federally sponsored agency securities 954 309 248 3,058 2,810
Other short-term securities 9,693 −6,227 55,761 5,684 −50,077
Long-term securities 63,307 165,198 299,445 273,183 −26,262
Treasury bonds and notes 79,256 145,684 193,165 147,077 −46,088
Federally sponsored agency securities −24,449 16,934 −12,649 97,240 109,889
Corporate bonds and notes 7,504 2,124 112,061 25,540 −86,521
Other long-term securities 996 456 6,868 3,326 −3,542
Other investment liabilities 314,312 194,633 284,325 −661 −284,986
Other equity n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a
Currency 7,321 18,284 17,425 2,909 −14,516
Deposits 166,191 −30,744 96,369 8,957 −87,412
Loans 25,629 197,963 168,218 −19,455 −187,673
Trade credit and advances 2,336 9,129 2,314 6,927 4,613
p
Preliminary
r
Revised

Note. The statistics are presented in International Transactions Accounts table 1.2, table 6.1, table 7.1, and table 8.1 on BEA's website.

The U.S. international transactions statistics for the first quarter of 2022 have been updated to incorporate newly available and revised source data and updated seasonal adjustments (table E).

Table E. Updates to First-Quarter 2022 International Transactions Aggregates
[Millions of dollars, seasonally adjusted]
Series Preliminary estimates Revised estimates
Balance on current account −291,418 −282,540
Balance on goods −342,247 −341,676
Balance on services 58,477 58,925
Balance on primary income 33,397 38,819
Balance on secondary income (current transfers) −41,045 −38,608
Net lending or borrowing from financial-account transactions −277,492 −235,710
Net U.S. acquisition of financial assets 343,108 414,584
Net U.S. incurrence of liabilities 626,362 656,055
Financial derivatives other than reserves, net transactions 5,762 5,762