Press Releases

The Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) published today the preliminary data of the Balance of Payments (BOP) of the State of Kuwait for the fourth quarter of 2017 and the revised data of the third quarter of the same year. The aforesaid data shows that the Current Account (summing up receipts and payments between domestic economy and other economies in terms of goods, services and income) recorded a surplus of KD 1,108 million against a surplus of KD 488 million during the comparative period, representing a hike of KD 620 million or 127.1%. The upturn in the current account surplus is due to the appreciation in the surplus of balance on goods and the depreciation in the surplus of primary income on one hand, and the contraction in the services account deficit and the increase in the secondary income deficit on the other. The surplus in the current account mainly reflects a surge in the value of oil exports at a greater rate than that of value of merchandise imports resulting in increasing surplus of the balance on goods (merchandise exports minus merchandise imports) to KD 2,291 million during the last quarter of 2017 as compared to KD 1,748 million during the previous quarter. Furthermore, deficit in the Services Account (net value of services transactions between residents and non residents, the most important of which are transportation, travel, communications and construction) fell by KD 348 million or 17.9% to KD 1,596 million during the fourth quarter of 2017, compared to a deficit of KD 1,944 million during the previous quarter.

As for the developments in the Financial Account (that records transactions involving transfers of financial assets and liabilities between residents and non-residents) of the State of Kuwait’s BOP during the fourth quarter of 2017, the net value of residents’ external assets included in the Financial Account grew at a better pace by KD 3,425 million against a growth of KD 1,432 million during the previous quarter, i.e. a surge of KD 1,993 million or 139.1%.

As a result of the developments in the main BOP accounts, the overall position of Kuwait’s BOP recorded a surplus of KD 383 million during the fourth quarter of 2017 against a deficit of KD 436 million during the previous quarter.

From a broader perspective, the overall position of the State of Kuwait BOP that takes into consideration the change in the net value of external assets of some institutions listed under “General Government” item, the overall position of BOP, in a broad definition, indicates a surplus estimated at KD 1,944 million during the fourth quarter of 2017 against a surplus of KD 895 million during the previous quarter.

Provisional Balance of Payments of the State of Kuwait for the Fourth Quarter of 2017