The balance of the country's balance of payments is equal. Balance of payments - what is it? The structure of the balance of payments. Questions for self-examination

The general balance of payments scheme recommended by the IMF contains 112 items (detailed view). The coarse-grained diagram summarizes these articles into seven blocks (aggregate view). However, even the enlarged scheme is rather complicated. It will become clearer if it is broken down into three parts: the current account, the capital and financial instruments account; balancing operations. Both the settlement and payments balances of the country are in the form of a table.

current account reflects all receipts from the sale of goods and services to non-residents and all expenditures by residents on goods and services provided by foreigners, as well as net investment income and net current transfers. Commodity exports and exports of services are accounted for with a plus sign on credit, as foreign exchange reserves are created in national banks. Conversely, imports of goods and imports of services are debited with a minus sign because they reduce the country's foreign exchange holdings.

The next measure of the current account is net investment income, that is, payments between residents and non-residents related to investment income. If domestic capital abroad generates more income than foreign capital invested in the country, then net investment returns will be positive; otherwise, negative.

Scheme of the country's balance of payments

Another indicator of this account is net current transfers, which include transfers of private and public funds to other countries without receiving a good or service in exchange. These are pensions, gifts, money transfers abroad or gratuitous assistance to foreign states. Depending on its direction, the transfer is reflected either in the debit or in the credit of the balance sheet.

Balance of foreign trade- part of the country's balance of payments, which reflects transactions in goods. It is the most important initial indicator of the overall situation, since trade accounts for about 80% of the total volume of international economic relations. A positive balance of foreign trade is regarded as a favorable fact, which speaks of the competitiveness of the products of this state in foreign markets. A negative balance is considered undesirable and is usually regarded as a sign of the weakness of the country's world economic position. However, for some states, the “services” section plays an important role. As a rule, these are states through which large tourist flows pass and in which tourism revenues are large.

Current account balance- part of the country's balance of payments, which reflects all items related to the movement of funds for goods and services, as well as net investment income and net current transfers. A positive balance of this balance indicates that the country's income from the export of goods and services and current transfers from abroad exceed its expenditure on imports of goods and services. A current account deficit reflects an increase in the country's debt to other countries.

Capital account- a group of items of the balance of payments, fixing capital transfers and transactions of purchase and sale of non-produced non-financial assets. Net capital transfers include transfers of ownership of fixed capital associated with the acquisition or use of fixed capital or involving the cancellation of debt by a creditor. These include investment grants provided, for example, for the construction of roads, hospitals, airfields. The "write-off" of debt to the government is also included in this section of the balance of payments. Transactions for the sale and purchase of non-produced financial assets reflect the transfer of ownership of tangible assets that are not the result of production activities (land and its subsoil), as well as intangible assets (trademarks, patents, licenses, etc.). A positive capital account balance is defined as the net inflow of capital into a country. On the contrary, a net outflow (or outflow of capital) occurs against the background of a capital account deficit,

financial account- a group of balance of payments items covering all transactions that result in the transfer of ownership of external financial assets and liabilities of a given country. Loans are provided in the form of direct or portfolio investments. Direct foreign investment- the acquisition of a long-term interest by a resident of one country (direct investor) in an enterprise-resident of another country (an enterprise with direct investment), which provides management control over the investment object. Portfolio investment- capital investments in foreign securities that do not give the investor the right to real control over the investment object.

Reserve assets, unlike other items of the financial account, are under the direct control of the state and can be used by it to achieve the goals of economic policy. Reserve assets- international highly liquid assets of the country, which are under the control of its monetary authorities or government and at any time can be used by them to finance the balance of payments deficit and regulate the national currency. The growth of official foreign exchange reserves in the central bank is reflected in the debit with a minus sign, since this operation represents an expenditure of foreign currency. Conversely, a decrease in official foreign exchange reserves is taken into account in credit with a plus sign, since in this case the supply of foreign currency increases.

The balance sheet of capital and financial transactions shows the net foreign exchange receipts from all transactions with assets.

Net errors and omissions- an item of the balance of payments, reflecting the omissions of payments that for some reason were not recorded in other items of the balance of payments, and errors that crept into the records of individual payments. The error arises due to a number of circumstances. Among them is the gap in time between the transaction and the receipt of payment. Another reason for the occurrence of statistical errors is that individual items can be estimated very roughly (for example, spending by tourists abroad). Some streams of economic value may remain outside the statistical register altogether, especially when it comes to illegal transactions.

The difference between foreign income and expenditure is the balance of payments. It can be active when the country's revenues from all external operations exceed its expenditures. Otherwise, when spending exceeds income, the country faces a passive balance, or deficit. Balances of payments must always be balanced or reduced to zero.

When performing foreign economic operations, such as exporting and importing goods and services, distributing income between the owners of factors of production (wages, interest, rent, profit), making direct and portfolio foreign investments, one currency is exchanged for another. At the same time, all completed operations on the outflow and inflow of funds in a particular country are recorded in the balance of payments.

The structure of the balance of payments. Payment balance is a systematized record of all economic transactions between residents of a given country and the rest of the world (non-residents) that occurred during a certain period of time (usually a year).

The balance of payments is built on the basis of a double entry: each transaction is reflected twice - on the credit of one item and the debit of the other. The credit includes those transactions, as a result of which there is an inflow of currency into the country (transactions are recorded with a plus sign). Debits include those transactions, as a result of which the country spends the currency (recorded with a minus sign). The total credits and debits of the balance of payments must be equal by definition.

In the balance of payments presented on the example of the Russian Federation in Table. 11.1, two main sections can be distinguished: the "Current Account", which is often called the current account for simplicity, and the "Capital and Financial Instruments Account", which is briefly called the capital account, or capital account.

Current transactions include transactions in goods, services and income. The results of foreign trade operations for a certain period of time are presented in the items "export" and "import". The part of the balance of payments that reflects the export and import of goods is called trade balance countries. The difference between merchandise exports and merchandise imports is trade balance. The balance will be considered negative (passive) if imports exceed exports. And it will be positive (active) if exports exceed imports. In addition to foreign trade in goods, the first section of the balance of payments reflects trade in services. Incomes and expenses, passing under the article "services", are connected with tourism, the maintenance of foreign missions, private non-commercial operations, receipts of a transport, insurance nature.

Note that the balance of transactions with goods and services is one of the components of GDP and represents net export(Xn).

The structure of the balance of payments of the Russian Federation can be represented as follows (see Table 11.1).

Table 11.1

Balance of payments of the Russian Federation for 2009-2011

	Amount, billion dollars
1. Current account
1.1. Trade balance:
1.2. Service balance:
1.3. Wage balance
1.4. Balance of investment income:
income receivable
income payable
1.5. Balance of current transfers
2. Capital account and financial instruments
2.1. Capital transfers
2.2. Financial account:
liabilities ("+" - growth, "-" - decrease)
assets ("+" - decrease, "-" - growth)
3. Clean errors and omissions
4. Change in foreign exchange reserves ("+" - decrease, - growth)

Source: cbr.ru

By wage balance And investment income balance income from the provision of services by the owners of factors of production (labor and capital) is reflected. Note that wages include remuneration of residents working under an employment contract with non-residents (the transaction is recorded with a plus sign, since there is an inflow of money into the country), and remuneration of non-residents who were hired by domestic employers (the transaction is recorded with a minus sign, since it leads to an outflow of money from the country). The balance of investment income reflects income from capital (ownership of assets). In this case, if residents have foreign shares, then non-residents pay dividends, and transactions in the balance of payments are reflected with a plus sign. If non-residents own, say, shares of a company located in the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation, then the payment of dividends to them will be reflected with a minus sign. We note in particular that the balance of investment income reflects only current operations related to the receipt of current income from investments. Thus, the sale of shares will be reflected in the capital account, since it will involve the transfer of ownership of the asset and is associated with the movement of capital, and not with the payment of current income - a dividend. The balance of these two balances is an important indicator - net factor income. If this indicator is greater than zero, then residents received more income than was paid to non-residents, and vice versa.

The current account reflects and current transfers that are not related to the provision of services, goods and resources. Current transfers are sometimes referred to as unilateral transfers because the transfer of money out of or into a country does not involve a return of benefits. Thus, transfers include transfers, humanitarian assistance in cash, charitable contributions, donations, etc. Similarly, if current transfers from a country exceed current transfers to a country, then the balance of current transfers will be negative.

The sum total of the trade balance, the balance of services, and payments for non-trade transactions gives the balance of the current account CA (from English - current account balance).

Once again, we note that transactions in the current account are recorded simultaneously in the capital account within the financial account, since this is associated with the inflow or outflow of currency within the national jurisdiction. Below, when characterizing the accounts of the balance of payments, the features of various international transactions will be shown.

Capital and Financial Instruments Account- the second section of the balance of payments, which reflects transactions with real and financial assets. The main sections of this account are the capital account (capital transfers) and the financial account.

Capital account (capital transfers) includes operations for the transfer of assets from one country to another: for example, investment grants provided for the construction of roads, airports; debt relief to the government. This section also includes assets, the ownership of which transferred to this jurisdiction along with migrants. For example, a Russian who has changed his place of residence and moved to live in Germany owns shares in Russian companies. In this case, when changing citizenship, there will be a capital transfer of Russian assets to Germany. For the balance of payments of the Russian Federation, this will mean an outflow of funds.

IN financial account transactions related to the sale and purchase of assets and changes in liabilities between residents and non-residents in the reporting period are reflected: loans and borrowings, direct and portfolio investments, derivative financial instruments, current account balances and deposits, cash currency transactions, etc.

For example, if a French company acquires a share in the share capital of a Russian company, then in this case there will be an inflow of funds into our country. If we are talking about obligations to residents, for example, a Russian citizen opens an account in Cyprus, then in this case there is an increase in our assets abroad and an outflow of funds from the country. If a Russian company draws up a credit line in an Italian bank, then there is an increase in the obligations of residents of the Russian Federation and an inflow of funds into the country (this operation in the Russian Federation will be reflected with a plus sign).

Thus, a negative financial account balance would show a net increase in foreign assets of residents and/or a net decrease in their foreign liabilities. Conversely, a positive balance would mean a net decrease in foreign assets of residents and/or an increase in their liabilities to non-residents.

The most important components of the financial account are direct and portfolio investments. Direct investments carried out to acquire control over assets. In accordance with international standards, the invested funds are considered as direct investments if the investor owns ten or more percent of the company's ordinary shares. Portfolio investment represent transactions with debt securities (bonds) and loans. In addition, investments related to the acquisition of minority stakes in order to extract speculative income are also considered portfolio investments.

The balance of the capital account and financial instruments is the sum of the balance of the capital account and the balance of the financial account.

The existence of the "Net errors and omissions" section is due to statistical discrepancies between data obtained from different sources (banking statistics, customs registers, etc.). For example, data on the export of goods is contained in customs statistics, while data on foreign exchange receipts on the accounts of enterprises for export deliveries are usually taken from banking statistics.

Change in foreign exchange reserves represents a set of transactions with foreign assets owned by the Russian Federation and managed by the Bank of Russia. They include cash foreign currency, monetary gold, balances on accounts in non-resident banks, bonds of foreign governments, assets in the IMF (special drawing rights - SDRs) and other liquid assets. Reserve assets are used for balancing the balance of payments(for example, by intervening in the foreign exchange markets), which will be discussed later.

Every transaction between residents and non-residents is accompanied by a double entry in the balance of payments.

This is due to the fact that each transaction involves the exchange of ownership of goods, services and assets, or the emergence or termination of obligations of residents and non-residents in relation to each other, or payment for the services of factors of production, or the transfer of funds between countries. In the balance of payments, it is required to simultaneously reflect both cash flows and the sources of these flows. Each transaction is simultaneously recorded as a debit of one item (imports of goods and services, reduction of liabilities of residents, increase in financial assets owned by residents, payment of income abroad) and a credit of another item (export of goods and services, reduction of financial assets owned by residents, increase in liabilities residents, receiving income from abroad). Here are some typical transactions between residents and non-residents (Table 11.2).

Table 11.2

Reflection of transactions in the balance of payments on the basis of double entry

Operation
Non-residents bought oil from residents		Exports in the form of so far commodities from the country (current account)
Residents bought a batch of household appliances from non-residents	Decrease in financial assets in the form of currency outflow (financial account)	Imports in the form of physical captain's inflow into the country (current account)
Non-residents bought shares of Russian companies	Increase in financial assets in the form of foreign exchange inflows (financial account)	Decrease in financial assets in the form of an outflow of securities (shares) (financial account)
A Russian company received a loan from a non-resident commercial bank	Increase in financial assets in the form of foreign exchange inflows (financial account)	Increase in liabilities to non-residents (financial account)

It should be noted that modern international economic relations often take complex forms, which is also reflected in the structure of the record of transactions related to this in the balance of payments. For example, a Russian company can take out a loan from a foreign bank to buy back shares (acquisition) of a foreign company. In this case, a double entry will be made in the balance of payments of the Russian Federation, associated with an increase in the obligations of the Russian company to a foreign bank and the inflow of foreign currency on the loan received. This inflow of currency will be transformed into shares of a foreign company, which will mean direct investments of the Russian company abroad and an outflow of currency in the financial account of the balance of payments.

It is important to understand that the influx of foreign currency (US dollars, euros and other world currencies) in response to the export of goods and services, the increase in the obligations of residents when receiving a foreign loan means that the issuers of these world currencies (central banks) undertake to ensure the circulation of their currencies. In this case, residents (exporters and domestic borrowers) are actually creditors of the states that issue these world currencies. This is reflected in the record of this transaction in the balance of payments: firstly, exports are recorded in the credit of the current account and, secondly, in the debit of the financial account (foreign deposits of Russian banks increase), as there is an inflow of foreign currency into the country.

Interrelation of accounts of the balance of payments. The sum of the current account, the capital and financial instrument account, and the change in foreign exchange reserves should be zero. This can be shown in a formal way:

SA + KA + AR = 0, (11.1)

where SA - current account balance; KA - the balance of the account of operations with capital and financial instruments; ΔR - change in foreign exchange reserves.

For example, if there is a current account deficit (CA< 0), т.е. отток валюты по импортным закупкам превышает приток валюты по экспорту, то он может быть профинансирован путем продажи части активов иностранцам (иностранные инвестиции в страну) или за счет увеличения обязательств резидентов, сопровождаемого притоком иностранной валюты (зарубежные займы у иностранных банков, правительств или международных организаций). Отметим также, что финансирование дефицита торгового баланса может происходить за счет сокращения официальных резервов в форме продажи иностранных активов, находящихся на балансе центрального банка. Если страна имеет положительным сальдо по счету движения капитала в рассматриваемый в платежном балансе период, то она является чистым заемщиком, или должником (нетто-дебитором). При этом на основе формулы (11.1) можно вывести следующее соотношение:

If in the period considered in the balance of payments there is a current account surplus (CA > 0), i.e. exports exceed imports, this can lead to a net outflow of foreign exchange in the capital account. In other words, if in Russia, as shown in Table. 11.1, the inflow of foreign currency for export exceeds the outflow of foreign currency associated with the financing of import purchases, then this surplus can be directed as Russian investments abroad. However, the excess currency can also be used to increase the country's official foreign exchange reserves. Note that the increase in foreign exchange reserves is due to the interventions of the central bank in the foreign exchange market. This issue will be considered later. If a country has a negative capital account balance in the period considered in the balance of payments, then it is a net creditor (net creditor). In this case, on the basis of formula (11.1), the following relation can be derived:

The relationship of the three sectors of the economy. The interconnection of sectors of the economy can be demonstrated using simple transformations of the basic macroeconomic identity, which for an open economy can be represented as

The identity of income and expenses in the four-sector model of the economy, as is known, has the following form (see paragraph 1.5):

After rearranging the terms, we get

(11.4)

where BD - budget deficit; (G - T), (S-I) - respectively, the balance of savings and investments of the private sector.

The resulting identities show the relationship between net exports X n(current account balance) with the savings-investment balance of the private sector and the budget deficit. Changes in one of the components of the identity inevitably mean changes in one or two of the others. Thus, in the Russian economy at the beginning of this century, the excess of savings over investments (S - I) > 0 was accompanied by a budget surplus and current account surplus:

As shown in formula (11.1), the current account and the capital account balance each other (for simplicity, we assume that there are no foreign exchange reserves), i.e.

In other words, the current account balance should be equal in absolute value and opposite in sign to the balance of the capital account and financial instruments. Therefore, in our example, a positive current account balance in the Russian economy also meant a negative capital account balance, i.e. an excess of savings (with a budget surplus) was accompanied by an outflow of capital from the country.

We also note that if we sum up private savings S and state savings (T - G), then after transforming formula (11.4) we get

where S n - national savings. We have a different form of writing the balance of payments equation: SA + KA = 0. The account of operations with capital and financial instruments of the balance of payments can be represented as (I - S n).

Expression (11.6) shows the relationship between international capital flows and flows of goods and services. The capital account can be thought of as an excess of domestic investment over savings: if domestic investment exceeds national savings, then it will be financed by funds borrowed from world financial markets (i.e., from the savings of the outside world). At the same time, foreign loans will make it possible to import more goods than we export, i.e. the current account will have a negative balance (the current account deficit will be financed by net capital inflows). Conversely, if national savings exceed investments, they are used for lending to the outside world, buying foreign assets, etc., i.e. there is an outflow of capital abroad. Foreigners need our loans because our exports exceed imports, i.e. we have a positive current account balance (correspondingly, their imports are greater than their exports, and their current account deficit is covered by borrowing from us).

Among the factors influencing the state of the balance of payments, there are fiscal and monetary policy. Thus, a restrictive monetary policy can lead to an increase in interest rates, an increase in the net inflow of capital into the country and the formation of an active (positive) balance in this part of the balance of payments. A stimulating fiscal policy is characterized by a decrease in the volume of national savings: , then , which means the formation/increase of the positive balance of the capital account of the balance of payments. The consequences of contractionary fiscal policy will be the opposite.

It should be noted that the current account deficit does not always indicate negative processes in the economy. Thus, rapidly developing countries often finance growing investments with foreign loans (capital account surplus), importing large volumes of investment goods (machinery, equipment) and running a current account deficit.

Since the formation of the first states in the history of mankind, trade has gone beyond the boundaries of one country. At first, it could have been the exchange of goods, but after the advent of money, the scale of trade operations changed significantly.

concept

For too long, international trade transactions between countries have not had a name. For the first time, such a concept as the balance of payments was introduced into financial terminology in 1767 by James Denem-Stewart, a British economist. In his understanding, this term meant the expenditure by citizens of money abroad and the payment of debts to foreigners.

In a modern interpretation, the balance of payments is payments made from one country to another. Let us consider in more detail its structure and history of occurrence.

Conditions and necessity for the emergence of international balance sheets

As history has shown, the emergence of such a financial category as the balance of payments significantly changed the national economy of most countries.

If at the end of the 19th and at the beginning of the 20th centuries the cost of currencies was at the same level for a sufficiently long period of time, supported by the “gold standard”, which, in fact, formed their rate (which suited everyone), then in the conditions of a “floating” rate, this approach became unprofitable.

Previously, the financial item “Reserve Assets” participated in the regulation of any changes in the exchange rate. In our time, it is the country's balance of payments, or rather, its condition, that affects the fall or rise of the exchange rate. This financial category had to go through several transformations to reach the structure that the International Monetary Fund represents today.

Main financial approaches

Currently active are:

• The theory proposed by David Hume is considered classical. It is called "automatic balance". It was in it that the main work on the settlement of exchange rates was carried out by the Reserve Assets.
• The next step was the neoclassical approach, called elastic. Such financial geniuses as J. Robinson, A. Lerner, L. Metzler took part in its development. According to their theory, the backbone of the country's balance of payments is its foreign trade, the balance of which is determined by the level of prices for exported goods in relation to imported goods and multiplied by the underlying exchange rate. With this approach, the balance of the balance is ensured by a change in the exchange rate. That is, its devaluation will reduce the prices in foreign currency for export goods, while the revaluation will “force” foreign buyers to purchase the products of this country at a higher cost.
• The next theory is the absorption approach, in which the balance of payments (namely, its trade part) is "tied" to the main elements of the country's GDP. The founder of this approach was S. Alexander, who took as a basis the ideas put forward by J. Mead and J. Tinbergen. The regulation of the balance of payments in this case is carried out by stimulating exports while restraining imports. This should encourage domestic producers to produce competitive products and provide the same high level of services, and not depend solely on currency devaluation, as in the previous approach.
• The monetarist theory of balance is tied to monetary factors, namely, how the balance affects the circulation of money in the country. Here the approach is as follows: in order to avoid a deficit in the balance of payments, it is necessary to strictly control the amount of money circulating in the country. If there are too many of them, then they should be disposed of by purchasing foreign goods or services.

All of these approaches were used at different times and remain relevant today. Depending on which of the bottoms is currently used in the country, the types of operations carried out by it depend.

Structure

As a rule, many countries use trade operations as a balance of payments regulation in an effort to achieve a positive balance. In fact, there may be several such operations.

The International Monetary Fund has compiled a balance of payments scheme, which includes 112 items divided into 7 blocks. This scheme is extremely complicated for people who are not knowledgeable in financial areas, so it has been simplified to three parts, reducing everything to the following sections:

• current account;
• accounts related to capital transactions (financial instruments);
• transactions that regulate the balance of payments.

Let's take a closer look at what they are.

Main payment transaction accounts

Current accounts of the balance of payments include:

• import of products.

And together they make up the balance of trade. It is also necessary to mention:

• services (included in the article of the balance of trade and services);
• investment income;
• transfers.

As a rule, the current accounts of the balance of payments reflect all the cash receipts that come from the sale of goods and services to non-residents, as well as net income from investment projects. All export proceeds are taken into account in the column with a plus, since in these transactions the treasury is replenished with foreign currency. When import operations are carried out, they are taken into account as a minus in the debit column, since there is an outflow of currency from the country.

All over the world, the basis of the balance of payments of countries is. It occupies up to 80% of the volume in international economic relations. If, at the same time, the balance sheet is positive, then this is a sign that high-quality competitive products are produced in this country.

Balance of payments accounts for capital

The capital and instrument accounts include:

• direct capital account;
• financial accounts, which include the following instruments: direct investments, portfolio and other investments.

Capital accounts include all types of sales and purchases and transactions, capital transfers, debt cancellation, investment grants, transfer of property rights, cancellation of debt to the government, transfer of rights to both tangible (for example, subsoil) and intangible licenses etc.) assets.

When there is an inflow of currency into the treasury through these accounts, we can talk about a positive balance. And vice versa.

Financial accounts are associated with transactions for the transfer of ownership of the financial assets of a given country. The loans provided can take the form of both direct and portfolio investments.

in payment transactions

These concepts are the basis of any financial transactions, as they determine their quality. The balance of payments is a group of accounts that should ideally be positive after those financial transactions that were carried out in the country or abroad (export-import).

These operations, in turn, are divided into primary (that is, they are independent and have stable growth trends) and secondary (short-term, are under external influence, for example, the Central Bank or the Government of the country).

All countries in the world are striving to achieve an active, in the extreme case, zero balance of payments. If at some economic stage of a country's development its balance is in the red for a long time, then the reserves of gold and foreign currency in the Central Bank are reduced until the devaluation of its domestic currency occurs.

Payment Methods

Any payments made between countries are shown in two columns: credit and debit, and the difference between them is taken into account either as a positive or negative balance.

For example, when a country exports goods, labor, services, information or knowledge, and its treasury receives an inflow of foreign currency, then all proceeds from the operations performed will be entered in the column with the “+” sign of the balance of payments on the loan.

The same operations, but only for imports, entailing an outflow of currency from the country, are entered in the "debit" column with a "-" sign.

If a country buys (currency, securities) abroad, then such financial transactions are also recorded in the "debit", so there is an outflow of currency. In the event that, on the contrary, it sells domestic capital or writes off debt to non-residents (individual companies or the whole country), then this will be recorded under the “loan”. For example,

In this case, the balance of payments is a document that records the foreign economic relations and operations of the country, and since it has an international format, all cash flows are recorded in dollars.

in balance

These two concepts are associated with actions in which either the financing of a negative balance or the use of its positive counterpart is carried out.

The deficit in the balance sheet must be covered by something, and here it is important to determine whether it will be an overseas business account or capital in the form of loans.

The first, of course, is preferable, since it ensures the inflow of currency into the country, while loans will entail its outflow, and even with interest.

As a last resort, it is possible to use the country's gold and foreign exchange reserve to cover the deficit in the balance sheet, and, well, a completely desperate step is the devaluation of the domestic currency.

If there is a surplus generated in the course of current operations, the country spends the capital received on emerging negative balances. Also, part of the money goes to the article "Pure errors and omissions."

Payment scheme for MFIs

The structure of the balance of payments, adopted in 1993 by the IMF, includes:

• Estimated balance. All financial obligations of one country in relation to another / other states and their fulfillment within the terms specified in the agreement are implied.
• Balance of international debt. This includes actual payments to other countries and the inflow of money from them.

In reports on these types of balances, the amount of credit transfer of money must match the debit one.

Russian balance sheet

If we consider the balance of payments of Russia, then the main movement of foreign currency is displayed in the following ratios of imports and exports:

• overseas transportation;
• tourism industry;
• purchase or sale of licenses (patents, brands);
• trade;
• international insurance;
• direct or portfolio investment and much more.

For the first time, according to the structure proposed by the IMF of Russia, the balance of payments was compiled back in 1992, and since then it has been drawn up according to the same schemes.

Throughout the time, the main source of foreign exchange inflow into the country was the export of oil and gas, timber, weapons, equipment, coal and other products.

The main foreign trade partners of Russia are China, the USA, Germany, Kazakhstan, Belarus and other countries of near and far abroad.

Conclusion

So, the balance of payments is a statistical report of all international transactions that take place between countries. It indicates transactions, dates of payments, debit, credit and balance on them.

All three sections of the balance of payments reflect the financial position of the country according to:

• current operations;
• capital and financial instruments;
• omissions and errors.

They are the structure of the balance of payments. These parameters are followed by all countries in the world.

The concept of "balance of payments" first began to be used in the middle of the XVII century, when in 1767 James Stuart published his work "A Study on the Principles of Political Economy". The balance of payments term originally included only foreign trade balance and related gold movements.

Payment balance is a statistical system that reflects all foreign economic transactions between the economy of a given country and the economy of other countries that occurred during a certain period of time (month, quarter or year).

Payment balance is a report on all international transactions of residents of a particular country with non-residents for a certain period (usually a quarter and a year). In its turn, resident is [[an economic agent with a permanent residence in the country.

In Russia, the initial data for the balance of payments is collected primarily by the Federal State Statistics Service, and is compiled and published by the Central Bank in its periodical Bulletin of the Bank of Russia.

The balance of payments characterizes the development of foreign trade, the level of production, employment and consumption. Its data make it possible to trace the forms in which foreign investment is attracted, the country's external debt is repaid, changes in international reserves, the state of fiscal and, regulation of the domestic market and. The balance of payments serves as one of the data sources for and is directly used for calculation.

Table 5.13. Accounting for balance of payments transactions

Operations
I. Current account A. Goods and services B. Income (compensation and income from investments) b. Transfers (current and capital)	Income Receipt	Broadcast
II. Capital and Financial Instruments Account A. Capital account: Capital transfers Acquisition / sale of non-produced non-financial assets B. financial account Investments Reserve assets	Sale of assets Receipt	Acquisition of assets Broadcast

The sum of all accounts payable transactions must match the sum of accounts receivable, and the total balance must always be zero. However, in practice, balance is never achieved. This is because data characterizing different aspects of the same transactions are taken from several sources. These discrepancies are often referred to as net errors and omissions.

The balance of payments is built on the basis of accounting principles: each transaction is reflected twice - on the credit of one account and the debit of another. The rules for recording transactions in the BOP for debit and credit are as follows:

Standard components of the balance of payments contain the following accounts: current account (goods and services, income, current transfers); capital account (capital transfers, purchase/sale of non-produced non-financial assets); financial account (direct investment, portfolio investment, other investment, reserve assets).

One of the most important concepts in the balance of payments is concept of residency. By definition, an economic unit is resident in an economy if it has a center of economic interest in the economic territory of a country. This is important to know in order to determine the degree of integration of a given unit into the economy of a given country.

All transactions in the balance of payments are reflected in market prices, which are the amounts of money that buyers are willing to pay in order to purchase something from sellers who would like to sell for this amount, provided that the parties are independent and the transaction is based solely on commercial considerations.

The balance of payments clearly records the time of registration of the transaction, which may differ from the time of actual payment. Since statistical systems serve as the source of data for the SNA, they are compiled in national currency. However, if the exchange rate of the national currency is subject to constant devaluation against foreign currencies, then it is advisable to draw up the balance of payments in a stable currency, for example, in euros, US dollars, etc.

Balance of payments

One of the main concepts of the balance of payments is balance of payments or general balance of payments. This concept represents the balance of a certain group of accounts in the balance of payments and, from an economic point of view, speaking in the most general sense, should show the balance of those transactions that are primary, autonomous, independent or reflect early, stable trends. All other transactions, by definition, are made to finance this balance and are secondary, subordinate, usually short-term and often associated with regulatory influences or the Government.

Every country strives to have active or zero balance of payments. In the event that the balance of payments is negative for a long period of time, the central bank's gold and foreign exchange reserves begin to decline, and in the long term this may lead to the devaluation of the country's currency. Devaluation contributes to the growth of this country, but at the same time it is a factor of economic instability, which negatively affects economic development, as uncertainty increases in the economy, which is always a factor that reduces the investment attractiveness of this country.

Positive balance of payments means that non-residents must pay to this country more than this country to non-residents. If balance of payments deficit, this means that this country must pay non-residents more than they must pay this country. The country's central bank sells foreign currency to cover the difference in payments when there is a balance of payments deficit and buys up excess currency when there is a surplus in the balance of payments.

Fundamentals of the balance of payments

The balance of payments has its own compilation methods and construction scheme.

Basic methods of compiling the balance of payments

This is primarily an accounting method of double entry, i.e. splitting transactions of residents with non-residents in two columns, called "credit" and "debit", the difference between which is called the "balance". The rules for reflecting operations in the balance of payments for credit and debit are as follows (Table 40.1).

Thus, the export of goods, services, knowledge, as well as the receipt of income from the export of capital and labor into the country are recorded in the balance of payments on the loan, i.e. with a “+” sign, and the import of goods, services, knowledge and the transfer abroad of income from the import of capital and labor are recorded in debit, i.e. with a "-" sign. The acquisition by residents of real capital abroad will be debited, and the sale by them of real capital previously acquired abroad will be credited. The inflow of financial capital into the country from abroad (considered to be an increase in the country's obligations towards non-residents), the outflow of domestic financial capital from abroad, as well as the write-off of debtors-non-residents of their debts will go on a loan. The export of financial capital from the country abroad (considered to be an increase in claims on non-residents), the outflow of foreign capital from the country, an increase in debt to non-residents will be debited.

Table 40.1. Rules for recording transactions in the balance of payments

Operation	Credit plus (+)	Debit, minus (-)
Goods and services Investment income and wages Transfers Acquisition or sale of non-financial assets Transactions with financial assets or liabilities	Export of goods and services Receipts from non-residents Receive funds Sale of assets Increasing liabilities to non-residents or decreasing claims to non-residents	Import of goods and services Payments to non-residents Transfer of funds Acquisition of assets Increasing claims on non-residents or reducing liabilities to non-residents

The balance of payments is a statistical document on the foreign economic relations of the country, and therefore it is usually compiled in dollars - the main international currency. When compiling the balance of payments proceed from the time of the transaction, although payment may be made later. For example, a good is exported and therefore its value is recorded in the balance of payments in the credit column. However, payment for this product will be made later, as the product is delivered in installments, and therefore the value of the exported goods is recorded simultaneously as an export credit in the "debit" column. In the event that this product is delivered abroad free of charge (for example, as part of humanitarian assistance), it will be recorded as an export of goods and at the same time as a transfer in the “debit” column. Transfer in the balance of payments refers to gratuitous transfers in the form of goods, services and money.

The term "balance of payments" appeared as early as 1767 in a book by Smith's contemporary and also a Scot James Stewart, but the first official balance of payments was compiled in the United States in 1923. The pre-war League of Nations, and after the war, the International Monetary Fund made a great contribution to the development methods and schemes of the balance of payments. Balance of payments around the world are compiled in accordance with the IMF's fifth edition of the Balance of Payments Manual, in force since 1993.

Balance of payments

The balance sheet in neutral terms is always reduced to zero. However, how is this achieved - through the efforts of the country or through the reduction of gold and foreign exchange reserves and the growth of external debt? Should the state of the balance of payments be assessed immediately for all its sections, or for the state of one of the sections?

In practice, the balance of payments is usually identified with the current account balance. Therefore, when the term “balance of payments” is used in economic publications, it means the current account balance. Thus, Russia's balance of payments surplus in 2003 amounted to $35.9 billion. Such an identification makes sense because current operations, on the one hand, have a rapid (current) impact on the country's economy, and, on the other hand, largely determine the state of the capital account. and financial instruments. For example, a negative current account balance already in the first quarter of 199S prompted the Russian ruble to devalue soon that year and the Russian government to borrow heavily from the IMF. When analyzing this balance, special attention is paid to the trade balance.

Less often, the balance of payments is used in an analytical presentation. It is called the balance of official financing (official settlements) due to the fact that it explains the reasons for the receipt of payments from official gold and foreign exchange reserves and often other settlements of the government of the country with the outside world, which arise as a result of an imbalance in the country's balance of payments. In 2003, this balance in Russia amounted to a positive value of $26.4 billion.

Deficit and surplus in the balance of payments

Both deficits and surpluses in the balance of payments raise questions about how a negative balance is financed and how a surplus is used.

In the event of a current account deficit, the country finances it with a capital account surplus. So the question is rather, with what capital will this deficit be financed - with foreign entrepreneurial or loan capital? Entrepreneurial capital is considered more preferable, since its inflow into the country, unlike the inflow of a loan captain, does not mean a mandatory subsequent outflow along with interest, and besides, it brings with it such factors as entrepreneurship and

knowledge. Deficit financing through official gold and foreign exchange reserves is less readily resorted to, especially if they are small. Finally, they resort to the devaluation of the national currency, which usually entails an improvement in the current account balance (see below).

In the event of a current account surplus, the country spends it to finance the automatically arising negative capital account balance and to finance the item “Net errors and omissions” (if the latter has a negative sign). As can be seen from Table. 40.2, the positive balance of the current account balance of Russia in 2003 in the amount of $ 35.9 billion went to increase the official gold and foreign exchange reserves by $ 26.4 billion and to pay off the negative balance on other items (including the item "Net errors and omissions" ) with a total value of $9.4 billion.

Therefore, a systematically negative current account balance does not always indicate a crisis in the country's balance of payments. For it can also be systematically covered by the net movement of entrepreneurial capital. However, this is possible when the country has an excellent investment climate for domestic and foreign entrepreneurs, and therefore they actively invest in the economy of this country.

Therefore, we can say that a balance of payments crisis occurs when a systematically large negative balance of payments is covered by gold and foreign exchange reserves and the attraction of foreign loan capital.

Theories, meaning and regulation of the balance of payments

The balance of payments has a significant impact on the entire national economy.

Theories of the balance of payments

These theories have come a long way. dominant in the 19th and early 20th centuries. under the gold standard classical theory automatic balance Scotsman and Smith's friend, historian and economist David Hume (1711-1776) then receded into the past along with the gold standard, which actually fixed exchange rates (see paragraph 41.1). However, in recent decades, interest in this theory has increased again. If in the previous conditions the role of the automatic regulator was taken by the item "Reserve assets", now, in the conditions of floating exchange rates, the floating exchange rate of the national currency, which falls when the state of the balance of payments deteriorates and increases when it improves, becomes such an automatic regulator, which automatically leads to changes in many current operations and partly in capital ones.

Then came the neoclassical elastic approach, developed primarily by J. Robinson, A. Lerner, L. Metzler. This approach implies that the core of the balance of payments is foreign trade and the balance of trade is determined primarily by the ratio of the price level for exported goods P e, to the level of prices for imported goods P i multiplied by the exchange rate r those. (Pe/Pi) . r. Hence the conclusion is drawn: the most effective means of ensuring the equilibrium of the balance of payments is a change in the exchange rate.

After all, the devaluation of the national currency reduces export prices in foreign currency, and the revaluation makes it more expensive for foreign buyers to purchase goods from this country and makes it cheaper for its own residents to import foreign goods.

The works of S. Alexander based on the ideas of J. Mead and J. Tinbergen formed the basis absorption approach which is generally based on Keynesian theory. This approach seeks to link the balance of payments (primarily the balance of trade) with the main elements of GDP, primarily with aggregate domestic demand (the term "absorption" is used to designate it). The absorption approach indicates that an improvement in the state of the balance of payments (including through the devaluation of the national currency) increases the country's income and, as a result, absorption in general, i.e. both consumption and investment. From this, the Keynesians conclude: it is necessary to stimulate exports, restrain imports, and above all through increasing the competitiveness of domestic goods and services in general (and not just by devaluing the national currency).

Monetarist approach to the balance of payments was incorporated in the works of many authors, especially X. Johnson and J. Pollack. The main attention here, of course, is given to monetary factors, primarily the impact of the balance of payments on the money circulation in the country. Monetarists believe that it is the disequilibrium in the country's money market that determines the disequilibrium of the balance of payments as a whole.

Hence their main recommendation to the government: not to interfere radically not only in monetary circulation, but also in the country's international settlements. After all, if there is more money in circulation than necessary, then they try to get rid of it, including buying more foreign goods, services, property and other assets. To eliminate the balance of payments deficit, only tight control over the money supply is required.

Macroeconomic Importance of the Balance of Payments

In the System of National Accounts chapter (see paragraph 22.3), the basic macroeconomic identity was described:

V=C+I+NX, (40.1)

• Y— national income (GDP);
• WITH— consumption;
• I— investments;
• NX- net export of goods and services.

This identity can be transformed into a number of others that will demonstrate the importance of the balance of payments for the national economy and the relationship between the balance of payments and other indicators of the national economy.

In most countries of the world, the current account balance is determined by the size of the trade balance, and therefore the main macroeconomic identity can be modified (albeit with great reservations) as follows:

Y = C + I + CAB. (40.2)

CAB- the balance of the current account balance (from the English current account balance). Then identity 40.2 can be transformed as follows:

CAB \u003d Y - (C + I). (40.3)

From identity 40.3 it is clear that with a positive current account balance, the country produces more goods and services than it consumes and invests, and with a negative balance, the country produces less goods and services than it consumes and invests. Therefore, a large current account surplus is by no means indicative of Russia's economic success, although it is preferable to a negative balance.

Then remember that national income is the sum of consumption and savings:

Y=C+S, (40.4)

Where S- savings. Comparing identities 40.2 and 40.4, we can make a new identity:

S=I+CAB, (40.5)

from which it follows that:

CAB=S-I. (40.6)

Thus, the current account balance is determined by the difference between her savings and investments. If the country's savings exceed investment (S > I), then the current account balance will be positive, and vice versa if S< I, то сальдо будет отрицательным. Россия с ее стабильным превышением сбережений над инвестициями и большим положительным сальдо текущего платежного баланса демонстрирует справедливость этого вывода.

The current account balance is also related to the state budget. State budget deficit D usually funded by savings S, and therefore Identity 40.6 can be modified as follows:

CAB=S-I-D, (40.7)

from which it follows that the value of the current account balance depends not only on how the country's savings are related to its investments, but also on the deficit of its state budget (if there is such a deficit).

Finally, the current account balance affects the size of the money supply in the country. With a large positive balance of payments, the amount of foreign currency imported by exporters into the country exceeds the amount of importers' needs in this currency. Therefore, a significant amount of foreign currency remains in the hands of exporters, and they change it at the central bank for the national currency, which the central bank is forced to issue specifically for the purchase of their foreign currency balances from exporters. As a result, on the one hand, the country's official gold and foreign exchange reserves are growing rapidly, and on the other hand, the money supply is growing rapidly, which is fraught with inflation. A large negative current account balance also creates the danger of inflation. Thus, the shortage of foreign currency among importers leads to a reduction in the country's reserve assets, and as a result, the ratio of reserve assets to the money supply worsens, which is dangerous - after all, countries tie their monetary unit to their reserve assets. To avoid the depreciation of its currency, the country begins to reduce (or stops increasing) the money supply, and this can slow down economic growth.

Balance of payments regulation

Fearing a balance of payments crisis, many countries are aiming for current account surpluses. To do this, they regulate, first of all, its basis - the trade balance. At the same time, they use both foreign trade measures (primarily measures to restrict imports and encourage exports - see clause 37.2), and foreign exchange (this is, first of all, the devaluation of the national currency, which usually hinders imports and stimulates exports - see clause 41.3) . But in the conditions of foreign economic liberalization, the active use of foreign trade measures is difficult, and therefore foreign exchange measures become the main ones.

However, a systematically large current account surplus also indicates undesirable moments in the economy. After all, at the same time, the balance of payments of the country produces more goods and services than it consumes and invests.

The ideal situation is when the balance of payments is in equilibrium in the long run. However, this situation is not easy to achieve because it may conflict with the objectives of domestic economic policy (see paragraph 43.1).

conclusions

The balance of payments is a report on all international transactions of residents of a country with non-residents for a certain period (usually a quarter and a year). It has its own compilation methods.

This is primarily an accounting method of double entry, i.e. splitting transactions of residents with non-residents in two columns, called "credit" and "debit", the difference between which is called the "balance".

The balance of payments actually consists of sin sections - the current account, the account of operations with capital and financial instruments, omissions and errors. The current account (current account) covers the movement of goods, services, knowledge, as well as income from the movement of capital and labor and the so-called current transfers, which are considered as a redistribution of income. The capital account and financial instruments account covers the movement of financial capital, and its balance must be equal in absolute value and opposite in sign to the current account balance. In practice, however, both balances rarely add up to the amount of zero required for a balance sheet, and so the balance of payments contains an item called "Net Errors and Omissions," which is effectively the third section of the balance of payments, the difference between the current account and the capital account.

The current account in the Russian balance of payments is usually reduced to a positive balance, which is quite large even by world standards. It is provided both by high world prices for the most important goods of Russian exports, and by the large lag in the size of Russian imports from Soviet-era imports. The latter is explained primarily by the decline in imports of investment goods due to the fact that the need for them is small, since the volume of domestic investment in Russia, even in the middle of this decade, is still two times lower than at the end of the 1980s.

A balance of payments crisis occurs when a systematically large negative balance of payments is covered by gold and foreign exchange reserves and the attraction of foreign loan capital.

The main theories of the balance of payments are the theory of automatic equilibrium, as well as elastic, absorption and monetarist approaches. It follows from them that with a positive current account balance, the country produces more goods and services than it consumes and invests, and with a negative balance, the country produces less goods and services than it consumes and invests. Another theoretical conclusion is that the current account balance is determined by the difference between her savings and investments. In addition, the size of the current account balance depends not only on how a country's savings are related to its investments, but also on its state budget deficit (if any).

Fearing a balance of payments crisis, many countries are aiming for current account surpluses. However, a systematically large current account surplus also indicates undesirable moments in the economy. Therefore, the ideal situation is when the balance of payments is in equilibrium in the long run. However, this situation is not easy to achieve, because it can also be in conflict with the goals of domestic economic policy. This is evidenced by the model of internal - external equilibrium.

If a country's balance of payments is a statement of the movement of its external assets and liabilities, then a country's international investment position is a statistical statement of the amount of foreign assets and liabilities accumulated by the country's residents. Russia's net international investment position is positive. This is ensured by large gold and foreign exchange reserves and large assets abroad, both in the form of private investment and the external debt of other Russian countries.

The problem of external debt is still acute in Russia, although its content has changed in recent years: if in the past decade it was more of a problem of public external debt, now it is more of a problem of private external debt.

country's balance of payments- the ratio of cash payments coming into the country from abroad, and all its payments abroad during a certain period of time (year, quarter, month). The balance of payments is a table of correspondence between the external income and expenditure of the country. It finds a value expression for all foreign economic operations of the country.

The balance of payments is a systematized assessment of economic transactions between residents of the country and non-residents related to the receipt and payments of funds. The main receiving operations are receipts from the export of goods and services, income from foreign investments and the acquisition by foreign firms of the country's domestic assets, and the main payment operations are payment for the import of goods and services, payment of income on foreign investments in this country and the acquisition of foreign assets by residents.

Residents are legal entities and individuals operating in a given country. The information contained in the balance of payments is used to assess the country's creditworthiness, predict the impact of foreign economic relations on the foreign exchange market and the exchange rate, regulate them, assess the state of the country's economy, predict possible economic, fiscal and monetary policies, calculate gross domestic product, etc.

The difference between income and expenses is balance balance of payments. It can be positive or negative. In the latter case, there is a balance of payments deficit. The country spends more abroad than it receives from outside. This may adversely affect the stability of the exchange rate.

The balance of payments is financed, that is, it is paid off (if it is negative) or distributed (if it is positive) mainly due to the net change in the country's gold and foreign exchange and other official reserves.

It is customary to compile balance of payments in the national currency of the respective countries, with the recalculation of data at market exchange rates that are formed on the date of the transactions. If the national currency is unstable, the balance of payments may be drawn up in the hard currency of a country.

There are two sections (accounts) in the balance sheet:

1. Account (balance) of current operations.

2. Account (balance) of capital movement.

The current account balance includes:

1) trade balance - reflects the total payments for the export and import of goods;

2) balance of services. Trade in services includes payment for foreign transportation, tourism, buying and selling patents and licenses, and international insurance.

3) the balance of transfers - money transfers, the movement of income from property abroad (%, dividends, profits), payment of% on foreign loans and credits, gratuitous assistance.

The current account balance represents a country's net exports (NE). The balance is positive if exports exceed imports. If imports exceed exports, then the balance will be negative.

The balance of transactions with capital and financial instruments characterizes transactions related to investment activities. This section consists of transfers of funds for investing in enterprises, buying shares. It reflects the purchase and sale of foreign assets, the provision and receipt of loans.

The balance sheet of capital includes:

q capital inflow (import of KZ capital);

q capital outflow (export of capital KE).

The capital account balance represents the net export of capital.

The balance of payments (ZB) is the sum total of the balance of current operations and the balance of capital movements:

ZB \u003d (E - Z) - (KE - KZ) \u003d NE - NKE.

Sections of the balance of payments balance among themselves. Balancing is achieved through gold and foreign exchange reserves (their sale) and deferral of payments on loans. The presence of 2 sections shows that the international flows of funds to finance capital accumulation and the flows of goods and services are two sides of the same coin.

The balance of current operations and the balance of operations with capital and financial assets must be equal in absolute value and have opposite signs. A current account deficit means that a country spends more foreign currency on goods, services, and other current transactions than it receives from selling them. It is financed through the sale of assets to non-residents and through external loans. With limited assets and difficulty in obtaining loans, countries with persistent current account deficits are forced to reduce imports and increase exports.

A positive current balance means an increase in net foreign assets. The country's overall balance of payments is positive if the balance of current operations, together with the balance of operations with capital and financial instruments, forms a positive balance. This leads to an influx of foreign currency into the country and an increase in foreign exchange reserves. In the case of a negative balance, there is a deficit in the balance of payments, and the country's national bank is forced to reduce foreign exchange reserves. A country cannot for a long time spend more on the purchase of foreign goods, services and assets than it receives from the sale of its own goods, services and assets. Therefore, the balance of payments is its most important analytical concept.

The balance of payments is called active when the amount of funds received from other countries is less than the amount of payments. Otherwise, the balance is passive.

With an active balance of payments, foreign exchange rates in the foreign exchange market of a given country fall, and the rate of the national currency rises. The opposite occurs when a country has a passive balance of payments.

The balance of payments is reduced to a positive balance when the current balance in the amount of the capital flow balance gives a positive result, i.e. net foreign exchange earnings are positive.

The balance of payments is reduced to a deficit when the net foreign exchange receipts for the 2 sections are negative.

With a deficit in the balance of payments, the Central Bank reduces its foreign exchange reserves, with a positive balance, it forms reserves. The current account deficit is financed mainly by net capital inflows in the capital account. Conversely, a current account asset is accompanied by a net capital outflow. In the latter case, excess current account funds will be used to buy real estate or lend to other countries. As a result, the balance of payments must always be balanced.

A sharp increase in the positive balance of payments leads to a rapid growth in the money supply and thereby stimulates inflation. A sharp increase in the negative balance can cause the exchange rate to depreciate.