A Look at the U.S. International Transactions

Fourth Quarter and Year 2023

By Elliot Berg  |  April 10, 2024

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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 $1.6 billion, or 0.8 percent, to $194.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023 from $196.4 billion in the third quarter, revised (chart 1 and table A). The $1.6 billion narrowing of the current-account deficit reflected a reduced deficit on secondary income that was mostly offset by an expanded deficit on goods. The fourth-quarter deficit was 2.8 percent of current-dollar gross domestic product (GDP), down less than 0.1 percent from the third quarter.

In 2023, the U.S. current-account deficit narrowed by $152.8 billion, or 15.7 percent, to $818.8 billion from $971.6 billion in 2022 (chart 7 and table F). The deficit was 3.0 percent of current-dollar GDP, down from 3.8 percent in 2022.

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

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Table A. U.S. International Transactions
[Millions of dollars, seasonally adjusted]
Series 2023 Change 2023:Q3
to 2023:Q4
Q1r Q2r Q3r Q4p
Current account          
Exports of goods and services and income receipts (credits) 1,152,382 1,142,138 1,178,113 1,180,017 1,904
Exports of goods and services 768,631 746,232 768,156 768,801 645
Goods 525,859 496,581 515,819 514,425 −1,394
Services 242,773 249,651 252,337 254,377 2,040
Primary income receipts 338,806 350,154 365,340 361,625 −3,715
Secondary income (current transfer) receipts 44,944 45,752 44,617 49,591 4,974
Imports of goods and services and income payments (debits) 1,365,036 1,357,118 1,374,491 1,374,827 336
Imports of goods and services 968,581 948,180 954,014 960,841 6,827
Goods 787,492 770,446 775,004 779,372 4,368
Services 181,089 177,734 179,010 181,469 2,459
Primary income payments 307,415 317,956 328,406 325,496 −2,910
Secondary income (current transfer) payments 89,041 90,982 92,070 88,490 −3,580
Capital account          
Capital transfer receipts and other credits 44 8 18 15 −3
Capital transfer payments and other debits 5,957 2,745 2,124 2,463 339
Financial account          
Net U.S. acquisition of financial assets excluding financial derivatives (net increase in assets / financial outflow (+)) 215,257 207,359 285,043 258,959 −26,084
Direct investment assets 115,645 92,023 136,889 149,769 12,880
Portfolio investment assets 8,109 38,966 46,463 −37,045 −83,508
Other investment assets 90,725 76,098 101,292 147,643 46,351
Reserve assets 778 272 400 −1,408 −1,808
Net U.S. incurrence of liabilities excluding financial derivatives (net increase in liabilities / financial inflow (+)) 556,790 337,572 493,124 469,833 −23,291
Direct investment liabilities 112,207 111,603 81,931 88,405 6,474
Portfolio investment liabilities 299,510 402,487 268,096 242,576 −25,520
Other investment liabilities 145,073 −176,518 143,097 138,852 −4,245
Financial derivatives other than reserves, net transactions −1,727 −4,741 1,068 −10,242 −11,310
Statistical discrepancy          
Statistical discrepancy1 −124,691 82,763 −8,530 −23,859 −15,329
Balances          
Balance on current account −212,655 −214,980 −196,378 −194,810 1,568
Balance on goods and services −199,949 −201,948 −185,857 −192,040 −6,183
Balance on goods −261,633 −273,866 −259,185 −264,948 −5,763
Balance on services 61,684 71,917 73,327 72,908 −419
Balance on primary income 31,391 32,199 36,933 36,129 −804
Balance on secondary income −44,097 −45,230 −47,454 −38,899 8,555
Balance on capital account −5,913 −2,737 −2,105 −2,447 −342
Net lending (+) or net borrowing (-) from current- and capital-account transactions2 −218,568 −217,717 −198,483 −197,257 1,226
Net lending (+) or net borrowing (-) from financial-account transactions3 −343,260 −134,954 −207,013 −221,117 −14,104
p
Preliminary
r
Revised

Table Footnotes

  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 table 1.2 of the International Transactions Accounts Interactive Data Application on the BEA website.

Exports of goods and services to, and income received from, foreign residents increased $1.9 billion to $1.18 trillion in the fourth quarter (charts 2 and 3 and tables A and B). Imports of goods and services from, and income paid to, foreign residents increased $0.3 billion to $1.37 trillion (charts 2 and 4 and tables A and C).1

Chart 2. Current-Account Transactions

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Trade in goods

Exports of goods decreased $1.4 billion to $514.4 billion, reflecting decreases in automotive vehicles, parts, and engines, led by trucks, buses, and special purpose vehicles; in consumer goods, led by medicinal, dental, and pharmaceutical products; and in nonmonetary gold. The decrease in exports of goods was partly offset by an increase in industrial supplies and materials, mostly petroleum and products. Imports of goods increased $4.4 billion to $779.4 billion, reflecting increases in capital goods, mainly computers and computer accessories, peripherals, and parts, and in industrial supplies and materials, mainly petroleum and products. The increase in imports was partly offset by a decrease in consumer goods, mostly toys and sporting goods.

Trade in services

Exports of services increased $2.0 billion to $254.4 billion, reflecting increases in travel, mostly other personal travel, and in transport, mainly air passenger transport. Imports of services increased $2.5 billion to $181.5 billion, reflecting an increase in travel, mostly other personal travel.

Primary income

Receipts of primary income decreased $3.7 billion to $361.6 billion, and payments of primary income decreased $2.9 billion to $325.5 billion. The decreases in both receipts and payments reflected a decrease in direct investment income, primarily earnings, that was partly offset by an increase in other investment income, primarily interest on loans and deposits.

Secondary income

Receipts of secondary income increased $5.0 billion to $49.6 billion, reflecting an increase in general government transfers, mostly fines and penalties. Payments of secondary income decreased $3.6 billion to $88.5 billion, reflecting a decrease in general government transfers, mainly international cooperation.

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

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

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Table B. Exports of Goods and Services and Income Receipts
[Millions of dollars, seasonally adjusted]
Series 2023 Change 2023:Q3
to 2023:Q4
Q1r Q2r Q3r Q4p
Exports of goods and services and income receipts 1,152,382 1,142,138 1,178,113 1,180,017 1,904
Exports of goods 525,859 496,581 515,819 514,425 −1,394
General merchandise 517,765 487,776 502,886 505,019 2,133
Foods, feeds, and beverages 44,252 39,081 38,422 40,637 2,215
Industrial supplies and materials 188,872 170,208 175,397 183,269 7,872
Energy products 95,362 81,894 87,687 94,299 6,612
Of which: Petroleum and products 76,662 65,988 71,857 77,695 5,838
Nonenergy products 93,510 88,314 87,710 88,970 1,260
Capital goods except automotive 148,448 147,964 151,932 153,367 1,435
Automotive vehicles, parts, and engines 43,342 44,436 48,243 42,955 −5,288
Consumer goods except food and automotive 68,210 63,452 66,296 61,935 −4,361
Other general merchandise 24,642 22,635 22,596 22,855 259
Net exports of goods under merchanting 192 186 270 341 71
Nonmonetary gold 7,902 8,618 12,663 9,065 −3,598
Exports of services1 242,773 249,651 252,337 254,377 2,040
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. 3,655 3,993 3,869 3,944 75
Transport 24,144 23,982 24,539 25,825 1,286
Travel (for all purposes including education) 39,858 42,520 45,987 47,490 1,503
Business 8,131 8,952 9,153 9,807 654
Personal 31,727 33,568 36,834 37,682 848
Construction 261 207 231 260 29
Insurance services 5,952 6,040 5,838 6,124 286
Financial services 43,321 42,726 44,842 43,899 −943
Charges for the use of intellectual property n.i.e. 31,877 31,907 30,522 31,413 891
Telecommunications, computer, and information services 17,213 18,422 17,865 18,656 791
Other business services 61,393 64,278 63,187 62,320 −867
Personal, cultural, and recreational services 6,622 6,731 7,087 7,125 38
Government goods and services n.i.e. 8,477 8,844 8,371 7,320 −1,051
Primary income receipts 338,806 350,154 365,340 361,625 −3,715
Investment income 336,933 348,278 363,458 359,736 −3,722
Direct investment income 164,408 163,796 174,715 167,484 −7,231
Income on equity 159,111 157,770 168,792 161,275 −7,517
Dividends and withdrawals 93,596 79,789 66,316 45,672 −20,644
Reinvested earnings 65,515 77,980 102,476 115,603 13,127
Interest 5,297 6,027 5,923 6,208 285
Portfolio investment income 120,260 125,462 124,543 125,126 583
Income on equity and investment fund shares 79,288 83,401 81,585 84,073 2,488
Interest on debt securities 40,972 42,061 42,958 41,052 −1,906
Other investment income 50,674 57,135 62,064 65,019 2,955
Reserve asset income 1,590 1,884 2,137 2,107 −30
Compensation of employees 1,873 1,877 1,881 1,889 8
Secondary income (current transfer) receipts2 44,944 45,752 44,617 49,591 4,974
p
Preliminary
r
Revised
n.a.
Not available
n.i.e.
Not included elsewhere

Table Footnotes

  1. See also “Table 2.1. U.S. Trade in Services, by Type of Service” on the BEA website.
  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 tables 1.2, 2.1, 3.1, 4.1, and 5.1 of the International Transactions Accounts Interactive Data Application on the BEA website.

Table C. Imports of Goods and Services and Income Payments
[Millions of dollars, seasonally adjusted]
Series 2023 Change 2023:Q3
to 2023:Q4
Q1r Q2r Q3r Q4p
Imports of goods and services and income payments 1,365,036 1,357,118 1,374,491 1,374,827 336
Imports of goods 787,492 770,446 775,004 779,372 4,368
General merchandise 782,246 758,350 768,006 772,365 4,359
Foods, feeds, and beverages 51,507 48,688 50,433 50,935 502
Industrial supplies and materials 178,617 163,164 162,365 166,689 4,324
Energy products 76,728 64,780 69,826 75,810 5,984
Of which: Petroleum and products 67,276 58,535 64,471 69,852 5,381
Nonenergy products 101,889 98,384 92,539 90,879 −1,660
Capital goods except automotive 217,303 213,094 213,898 218,797 4,899
Automotive vehicles, parts, and engines 109,520 113,317 118,740 118,044 −696
Consumer goods except food and automotive 193,923 188,513 191,014 187,206 −3,808
Other general merchandise 31,376 31,573 31,555 30,693 −862
Nonmonetary gold 5,246 12,096 6,998 7,007 9
Imports of services1 181,089 177,734 179,010 181,469 2,459
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. 1,654 1,810 1,668 1,808 140
Transport 36,588 36,123 35,040 35,486 446
Travel (for all purposes including education) 37,425 36,502 36,781 39,276 2,495
Business 4,026 3,872 3,876 4,209 333
Personal 33,399 32,630 32,904 35,067 2,163
Construction 217 239 295 279 −16
Insurance services 13,759 14,422 15,069 15,189 120
Financial services 15,187 14,754 15,883 15,362 −521
Charges for the use of intellectual property n.i.e. 10,657 10,988 11,003 11,014 11
Telecommunications, computer, and information services 14,466 13,898 13,969 13,179 −790
Other business services 36,849 35,062 35,260 35,589 329
Personal, cultural, and recreational services 7,976 7,554 7,776 7,998 222
Government goods and services n.i.e. 6,312 6,382 6,267 6,289 22
Primary income payments 307,415 317,956 328,406 325,496 −2,910
Investment income 301,418 311,684 322,128 319,021 −3,107
Direct investment income 82,020 80,383 81,880 77,317 −4,563
Portfolio investment income 153,630 158,457 161,145 160,116 −1,029
Income on equity and investment fund shares 52,695 54,273 53,802 55,238 1,436
Interest on debt securities 100,934 104,185 107,343 104,878 −2,465
Other investment income 65,769 72,844 79,103 81,588 2,485
Compensation of employees 5,996 6,271 6,278 6,475 197
Secondary income (current transfer) payments2 89,041 90,982 92,070 88,490 −3,580
Supplemental detail on insurance transactions:          
Premiums paid 36,492 39,196 41,302 41,805 503
Losses recovered 26,578 26,572 26,579 26,485 −94
p
Preliminary
r
Revised
n.a.
Not available
n.i.e.
Not included elsewhere

Table Footnotes

  1. See also “Table 2.1. U.S. Trade in Services, by Type of Service” on the BEA website.
  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 tables 1.2, 2.1, 3.1, 4.1, and 5.1 of the International Transactions Accounts Interactive Data Application on the BEA website.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis

Capital-transfer receipts decreased $3 million to $15 million (table A). Capital-transfer payments increased $0.3 billion to $2.5 billion, reflecting an increase in infrastructure grants.

Net financial-account transactions were −$221.1 billion in the fourth quarter, reflecting net U.S. borrowing from foreign residents (table A).

Financial assets

Fourth-quarter transactions increased U.S. residents’ foreign financial assets by $259.0 billion (charts 5 and 6 and table D). Transactions increased direct investment assets, mostly equity, by $149.8 billion and other investment assets, mostly loans and deposits, by $147.6 billion. Transactions decreased portfolio investment assets, mostly equity, by $37.0 billion and reserve assets by $1.4 billion.

Liabilities

Fourth-quarter transactions increased U.S. liabilities to foreign residents by $469.8 billion. Transactions increased portfolio investment liabilities, mostly long-term debt securities, by $242.6 billion; other investment liabilities, primarily deposits, by $138.9 billion; and direct investment liabilities, mostly equity, by $88.4 billion.

Financial derivatives

Net transactions in financial derivatives were –$10.2 billion in the fourth quarter, reflecting net U.S. borrowing from foreign residents.

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

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

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Table D. Net U.S. Acquisition of Financial Assets and Net U.S. Incurrence of Liabilities
[Millions of dollars, seasonally adjusted]
Series 2023 Change 2023:Q3
to 2023:Q4
Q1r Q2r Q3r Q4p
Net U.S. acquisition of financial assets excluding financial derivatives (net increase in assets / financial outflow (+)) 215,257 207,359 285,043 258,959 −26,084
Direct investment assets 115,645 92,023 136,889 149,769 12,880
Equity 75,761 85,532 115,766 119,628 3,862
Equity other than reinvestment of earnings 10,246 7,551 13,289 4,025 −9,264
Reinvestment of earnings 65,515 77,980 102,476 115,603 13,127
Debt instruments 39,884 6,491 21,123 30,140 9,017
Portfolio investment assets 8,109 38,966 46,463 −37,045 −83,508
Equity and investment fund shares −40,678 26,322 28,460 −32,522 −60,982
Debt securities 48,787 12,644 18,003 −4,523 −22,526
Short-term securities −997 −18,872 13,668 −22,584 −36,252
Long-term corporate securities 34,091 25,721 3,747 14,731 10,984
Other long-term securities 15,693 5,795 588 3,330 2,742
Other investment assets 90,725 76,098 101,292 147,643 46,351
Other equity 266 1,582 0 0 0
Currency and deposits −69,162 −28,532 51,681 61,290 9,609
Loans 162,134 104,892 47,545 81,855 34,310
Trade credit and advances −2,513 −1,844 2,065 4,498 2,433
Reserve assets 778 272 400 −1,408 −1,808
Monetary gold 0 0 0 0 0
Special drawing rights 969 812 1,713 1,130 −583
Reserve position in the International Monetary Fund −210 −637 −1,487 −2,596 −1,109
Other reserve assets 19 97 175 58 −117
Net U.S. incurrence of liabilities excluding financial derivatives (net increase in liabilities / financial inflow (+)) 556,790 337,572 493,124 469,833 −23,291
Direct investment liabilities 112,207 111,603 81,931 88,405 6,474
Equity 116,919 73,822 69,867 74,512 4,645
Equity other than reinvestment of earnings 66,062 20,268 17,080 24,979 7,899
Reinvestment of earnings 50,857 53,554 52,787 49,532 −3,255
Debt instruments −4,712 37,781 12,064 13,894 1,830
Portfolio investment liabilities 299,510 402,487 268,096 242,576 −25,520
Equity and investment fund shares 74,159 74,039 5,336 1,715 −3,621
Debt securities 225,351 328,448 262,760 240,861 −21,899
Short-term securities −7,487 10,290 109,837 20,255 −89,582
Treasury bills and certificates 12,633 −13,992 99,180 21,766 −77,414
Federally sponsored agency securities 3,764 −5,892 −5,415 −4,658 757
Other short-term securities −23,884 30,174 16,072 3,147 −12,925
Long-term securities 232,838 318,157 152,923 220,605 67,682
Treasury bonds and notes 150,411 182,120 23,245 132,801 109,556
Federally sponsored agency securities 37,587 49,619 45,481 26,870 −18,611
Corporate bonds and notes 45,260 84,409 81,732 59,576 −22,156
Other long-term securities −420 2,009 2,465 1,358 −1,107
Other investment liabilities 145,073 −176,518 143,097 138,852 −4,245
Other equity n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Currency 6,807 11,869 −9,688 7,609 17,297
Deposits 55,438 −50,727 37,001 176,273 139,272
Loans 78,958 −142,460 108,723 −56,841 −165,564
Trade credit and advances 3,869 4,800 7,061 11,811 4,750
Special drawing rights allocations 0 0 0 0 0
p
Preliminary
r
Revised
n.a.
Not available

Note. The statistics are presented in tables 1.2, 6.1, 7.1, and 8.1 of the International Transactions Accounts Interactive Data Application on the BEA website.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis

In addition to revisions to source data for the third quarter of 2023, seasonally adjusted statistics for the first, second, and third quarters of 2023 were revised to force the sum of seasonally adjusted quarters to equal the annual totals (table E). This forcing procedure was also applied to the fourth quarter of 2023.

Table E. Updates to Third-Quarter 2023 International Transactions Aggregates
[Millions of dollars, seasonally adjusted]
Series Preliminary estimates Revised estimates
Balance on current account −200,304 −196,378
Balance on goods −260,953 −259,185
Balance on services 76,216 73,327
Balance on primary income 30,007 36,933
Balance on secondary income (current transfers) −45,574 −47,454
Net lending or borrowing from financial-account transactions −138,592 −207,013
Net U.S. acquisition of financial assets 323,357 285,043
Net U.S. incurrence of liabilities 463,018 493,124
Financial derivatives other than reserves, net transactions 1,068 1,068

The $152.8 billion narrowing of the current-account deficit in 2023 mostly reflected a reduced deficit on goods (chart 7).

Chart 7. Annual U.S. Current-Account Balance and Its Components

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Exports of goods and services to, and income received from, foreign residents increased $228.0 billion to $4.65 trillion in 2023. Imports of goods and services from, and income paid to, foreign residents increased $75.2 billion to $5.47 trillion (charts 8 and 9 and table F).

Trade in goods

Exports of goods decreased $37.2 billion to $2.05 trillion, and imports of goods decreased $160.6 billion to $3.11 trillion. The decreases in both exports and imports primarily reflected a decrease in industrial supplies and materials, led by petroleum and products.

Trade in services

Exports of services increased $70.6 billion to $999.1 billion, reflecting an increase in travel, mostly other personal travel. Imports of services increased $22.6 billion to $719.3 billion, reflecting an increase in travel, mostly other personal travel, that was partly offset by a decrease in transport, mainly sea freight transport.

Primary income

Receipts of primary income increased $198.1 billion to $1.42 trillion, and payments of primary income increased $210.0 billion to $1.28 trillion. The increases in both receipts and payments primarily reflected an increase in other investment income, mainly interest on loans and deposits.

Secondary income

Receipts of secondary income decreased $3.4 billion to $184.9 billion, reflecting a decrease in general government transfers, mainly fines and penalties. Payments of secondary income increased $3.3 billion to $360.6 billion, reflecting an increase in private transfers, mainly personal transfers and insurance-related transfers.

Chart 8. Annual Percent Change in Exports of Goods and Services and Income Receipts

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Chart 9. Annual Percent Change in Imports of Goods and Services and Income Payments

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Table F. Current Account
[Millions of dollars]
Series 2020 2021 2022 2023 p Change 2022 to 2023
Current account          
Exports of goods and services and income receipts (credits) 3,285,253 3,819,231 4,424,636 4,652,649 228,013
Exports of goods 1,433,852 1,765,884 2,089,925 2,052,683 −37,242
Foods, feeds, and beverages 139,281 164,476 179,906 162,391 −17,515
Industrial supplies and materials 451,077 617,878 812,452 717,746 −94,706
Capital goods except automotive 463,351 521,337 573,052 601,711 28,659
Automotive vehicles, parts, and engines 129,378 146,417 159,654 178,976 19,322
Consumer goods except food and automotive 174,159 221,799 245,027 259,894 14,867
Other general merchandise 51,754 61,177 78,013 92,727 14,714
Net exports of goods under merchanting 825 1,330 1,074 989 −85
Nonmonetary gold 24,028 31,471 40,749 38,249 −2,500
Exports of services 726,296 801,143 928,530 999,138 70,608
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. 13,288 12,600 14,468 15,461 993
Transport 57,471 66,054 90,956 98,490 7,534
Travel (for all purposes including education) 72,479 71,411 136,869 175,855 38,986
Construction 2,370 2,893 1,654 960 −694
Insurance services 20,023 22,262 22,668 23,955 1,287
Financial services 150,838 172,019 167,726 174,787 7,061
Charges for the use of intellectual property n.i.e. 115,936 128,352 127,392 125,719 −1,673
Telecommunications, computer, and information services 56,071 58,603 66,227 72,157 5,930
Other business services 195,133 220,162 245,212 251,178 5,966
Personal, cultural, and recreational services 20,710 23,836 26,829 27,564 735
Government goods and services n.i.e. 21,976 22,951 28,529 33,012 4,483
Primary income receipts 957,891 1,077,227 1,217,853 1,415,925 198,072
Direct investment income 497,552 616,443 640,697 670,403 29,706
Portfolio investment income 380,207 394,838 462,335 495,391 33,056
Other investment income 73,052 58,878 105,224 234,893 129,669
Reserve asset income 255 −84 2,164 7,719 5,555
Compensation of employees 6,826 7,152 7,432 7,519 87
Secondary income (current transfer) receipts 167,214 174,976 188,328 184,903 −3,425
Imports of goods and services and income payments (debits) 3,882,393 4,650,676 5,396,231 5,471,472 75,241
Imports of goods 2,346,727 2,849,395 3,272,935 3,112,315 −160,620
Foods, feeds, and beverages 155,441 183,320 209,575 201,564 −8,011
Industrial supplies and materials 429,242 640,922 807,378 670,836 −136,542
Capital goods except automotive 647,053 763,574 869,292 863,093 −6,199
Automotive vehicles, parts, and engines 309,877 346,542 399,908 459,621 59,713
Consumer goods except food and automotive 640,726 768,230 842,472 760,657 −81,815
Other general merchandise 102,727 121,067 118,180 125,197 7,017
Nonmonetary gold 61,662 25,741 26,130 31,348 5,218
Imports of services 466,301 559,205 696,707 719,301 22,594
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. 5,084 4,869 5,662 6,939 1,277
Transport 72,954 106,726 157,640 143,238 −14,402
Travel (for all purposes including education) 33,704 56,697 115,312 149,984 34,672
Construction 1,008 1,179 995 1,029 34
Insurance services 57,743 58,659 59,515 58,438 −1,077
Financial services 45,696 51,363 57,715 61,186 3,471
Charges for the use of intellectual property n.i.e. 45,025 46,065 53,241 43,661 −9,580
Telecommunications, computer, and information services 43,612 49,756 53,636 55,512 1,876
Other business services 112,652 130,291 138,063 142,759 4,696
Personal, cultural, and recreational services 24,269 28,453 29,607 31,304 1,697
Government goods and services n.i.e. 24,553 25,147 25,320 25,249 −71
Primary income payments 776,923 927,297 1,069,300 1,279,273 209,973
Direct investment income 183,963 315,039 322,714 321,600 −1,114
Portfolio investment income 492,303 524,273 588,364 633,348 44,984
Other investment income 86,227 70,081 134,741 299,303 164,562
Compensation of employees 14,431 17,905 23,481 25,022 1,541
Secondary income (current transfer) payments 292,441 314,778 357,289 360,583 3,294
Balances          
Balance on current account −597,140 −831,445 −971,595 −818,823 152,772
Balance on goods −912,875 −1,083,511 −1,183,010 −1,059,631 123,379
Balance on services 259,995 241,938 231,822 279,837 48,015
Balance on primary income 180,968 149,930 148,553 136,652 −11,901
Balance on secondary income −125,227 −139,802 −168,960 −175,680 −6,720
p
Preliminary
n.a.
Not available
n.i.e.
Not included elsewhere

Note. The statistics are presented in table 1.2 of the International Transactions Accounts Interactive Data Application on the BEA website.

Capital-transfer receipts decreased $8.3 billion to $85 million in 2023 (table G). Transactions in 2022 reflected receipts from foreign insurance companies for losses resulting from Hurricane Ian. Capital-transfer payments in 2023 increased $0.3 billion to $13.3 billion, reflecting an increase in infrastructure grants.

Net financial-account transactions were −$906.3 billion in 2023, reflecting net U.S. borrowing from foreign residents (table G).

Financial assets

Transactions in 2023 increased U.S. residents' foreign financial assets by $966.6 billion (chart 10 and table G). Transactions increased direct investment assets, mostly equity, by $494.3 billion; other investment assets, mostly loans, by $415.8 billion; portfolio investment assets, mainly long-term debt securities, by $56.5 billion; and reserve assets by $41 million.2

Liabilities

Transactions in 2023 increased U.S. liabilities to foreign residents by $1.86 trillion. Transactions increased portfolio investment liabilities, mostly long-term debt securities, by $1.21 trillion; direct investment liabilities, mostly equity, by $394.1 billion; and other investment liabilities, mostly deposits, by $250.5 billion.

Financial derivatives

Net transactions in financial derivatives were −$15.6 billion in 2023, reflecting net U.S. borrowing from foreign residents.

Chart 10. Annual U.S. Financial-Account Transactions Excluding Financial Derivatives

[View larger chart]
Table G. Capital and Financial Accounts and Statistical Discrepancy
[Millions of dollars]
Series 2020 2021 2022 2023 p Change 2022 to 2023
Capital account          
Capital transfer receipts and other credits 372 3,864 8,400 85 −8,315
Capital transfer payments and other debits 5,982 6,375 13,003 13,288 285
Financial account          
Net U.S. acquisition of financial assets excluding financial derivatives (net increase in assets / financial outflow (+)) 959,138 1,242,954 840,582 966,618 126,036
Direct investment assets 286,663 394,069 426,251 494,326 68,075
Equity 301,567 375,777 443,582 396,686 −46,896
Equity other than reinvestment of earnings 125,321 86,258 114,033 35,111 −78,922
Reinvestment of earnings 176,246 289,519 329,549 361,575 32,026
Debt instruments −14,904 18,291 −17,331 97,639 114,970
Portfolio investment assets 406,368 711,511 372,494 56,493 −316,001
Equity and investment fund shares 395,995 197,255 185,700 −18,418 −204,118
Debt securities 10,373 514,256 186,794 74,911 −111,883
Short term −24,942 75,368 −80,151 −28,785 51,366
Long term 35,315 438,888 266,945 103,696 −163,249
Other investment assets 257,133 23,381 36,023 415,758 379,735
Currency and deposits 92,767 −44,003 148,297 15,277 −133,020
Loans 170,830 64,262 −107,628 396,426 504,054
Trade credit and advances −8,311 1,915 −7,016 2,207 9,223
Reserve assets 8,974 113,993 5,814 41 −5,773
Monetary gold 0 0 0 0 0
Special drawing rights 81 113,685 4,966 4,624 −342
Reserve position in the International Monetary Fund 8,814 460 820 −4,931 −5,751
Other reserve assets 78 −153 28 349 321
Net U.S. incurrence of liabilities excluding financial derivatives (net increase in liabilities / financial inflow (+)) 1,622,963 1,992,760 1,564,676 1,857,319 292,643
Direct investment liabilities 138,364 493,086 388,078 394,147 6,069
Equity 174,942 411,265 335,467 335,120 −347
Equity other than reinvestment of earnings 89,672 188,271 111,987 128,389 16,402
Reinvestment of earnings 85,270 222,994 223,480 206,731 −16,749
Debt instruments −36,578 81,821 52,611 59,027 6,416
Portfolio investment liabilities 946,560 614,250 810,154 1,212,668 402,514
Equity and investment fund shares 687,417 −53,068 −69,788 155,249 225,037
Debt securities 259,144 667,318 879,942 1,057,419 177,477
Short term 269,163 −61,336 59,359 132,896 73,537
Long term −10,019 728,654 820,583 924,523 103,940
Other investment liabilities 538,038 885,424 366,445 250,504 −115,941
Currency and deposits 319,425 347,101 138,755 234,584 95,829
Loans 206,049 406,164 211,419 −11,621 −223,040
Trade credit and advances 12,564 19,326 16,271 27,540 11,269
Special drawing rights allocations 0 112,834 0 0 0
Financial derivatives other than reserves, net transactions −5,107 −39,028 −80,698 −15,642 65,056
Statistical discrepancy          
Statistical discrepancy1 −66,182 45,122 171,406 −74,317 −245,723
Balances          
Balance on capital account −5,610 −2,511 −4,603 −13,203 −8,600
Net lending (+) or net borrowing (−) from current- and capital-account transactions2 −602,750 −833,956 −976,198 −832,026 144,172
Net lending (+) or net borrowing (−) from financial-account transactions3 −668,932 −788,834 −804,792 −906,343 −101,551
p
Preliminary

Table Footnotes

  1. The statistical discrepancy is the difference between net acquisition of 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-account balance (table F) and capital-account balance.
  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 tables 1.2 and 6.1 of the International Transactions Accounts Interactive Data Application on the BEA website.

Footnotes

  1. U.S. international transactions are presented in current dollars in accordance with international statistical presentation guidelines. For a comparison of current-dollar (or nominal) and inflation-adjusted (or real) measures of international transactions, see “Section 4 – Foreign Transactions” of the National Income and Product Accounts Interactive Data Application.
  2. Statistics for portfolio investment assets and liabilities beginning with the first quarter of 2023 include newly available source data from the Treasury International Capital System “Aggregate Holdings, Purchases and Sales, and Fair Value Changes of Long-Term Securities by U.S. and Foreign Residents” form, which BEA incorporated with the “U.S. International Transactions, 2nd Quarter 2023” news release. For more information, see the “Technical Note” that accompanied the release.