Current account deficit up to 967 million euros, in Q1

The current account balance of payments recorded a deficit of 967 million euros in the first months of 2018, an increase by more than 25 per cent compared with the same period of 2017, reads a press release of the National Bank of Romania (BNR) on Monday sent to AGERPRES. 

The current account deficit accounted for 770 million euros in the same period last year. 

According to the same source, the goods balance saw a 460-million euros higher deficit, with the services balance showing a smaller surplus of 94 million euros and that of primary revenues recording a deficit by 328 million euros smaller. The secondary revenues balance posted a surplus by 29 million euros higher. 

Moreover, in January-March 2018, the total external debt increased by 2.050 billion euros. the external debt in the long run totalled 69.598 billion euros on March 31 2018 *72.9 per cent of the total external debt), an increase by 1.4 per cent compared with December 31 2017, and the external debt in the short run reached 25.929 billion euros in end-March (27.1 per cent of the total external debt), up 4.3 per cent compared with December 31 2017. 

The external debt service ratio in the long run was 14.2 per cent of the mentioned period, compared with 23.9 per cent in 2017. The cover rate of imports of good and services on March 31 2018 was of 5.4 months, a level comparable with the one on December 31 2017. 

The external debt cover ration in the short run, calculated as residual value, with currency reserves with the National bank of Romania on March 31 2018 stood at 84.8 per cent, compared with 87.2 per cent in the end of 2017.