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For more information on this release:
E-mail: bop@cso.ie John Flanagan (+353) 1 498 4054 Annette Hayes (+353) 1 498 4319
For general information on CSO statistics:
information@cso.ie (+353) 21 453 5000 On-line ISSN 2009-5317
CSO statistical release, , 11am

Quarterly International Investment Position and External Debt

Quarter 2 2017

     € billion
 31 Mar 201730 Jun 2017
 AssetsLiabilitiesNETAssetsLiabilitiesNET
General Government10.5139.9-129.410.4141.9-131.5
Monetary Authority29.216.712.535.216.718.4
Monetary Financial Institutions753.7726.427.2733.9714.619.3
Other Financial Intermediaries2,914.82,867.647.22,879.92,847.632.3
Non-Financial Companies811.21,264.4-453.2788.11,226.1-438.0
Total 4,519.35,015.0-495.64,447.64,947.0-499.4

Net IIP liability of €499 billion at end-June 2017

International Investment Position and External Debt June 2017 Figure 1
go to full release

 

At 30th June 2017, Ireland’s quarterly international investment position (IIP) results show overall stocks of foreign financial assets of €4,448bn – a decrease of €72bn on the end-March 2017 level, while the corresponding stocks of foreign financial liabilities decreased by €68bn to €4,947bn over the quarter. Irish residents had an overall net foreign liability of €499bn at end-June 2017, an increase of €4bn on the net foreign liability level at end-March 2017 – see Table 1(a).

  

 

 

 

 

 

Some points of note in the Quarter 2 2017 IIP are:

  • Direct Investment Abroad decreased by €3bn to €827bn. Equity capital (including reinvested earnings) increased €15bn while other capital decreased €18bn – see Table 3(a).
  • Foreign Assets of Other Financial Intermediaries decreased by €35bn. With foreign liabilities decreasing by €20bn the resulting net decreased to €32bn - see Table (1b).
  • Foreign Assets of the Monetary Authority increased by €6bn while foreign liabilities increased by less than €0.1bn. The resulting net increased to €18.4bn – see Table (1b).

 

X-axis labelDirect InvestmentPortfolio InvestmentOther InvestmentReserve AssetsNet IIP
Q22015110.972-655.9254.5271.909-488.512
Q3201562.068-623.80862.8881.873-496.979
Q4201519.699-690.525158.282.013-510.533
Q12016-18.757-637.447159.9672.937-493.3
Q22016-0.158-609.039125.022.762-481.415
Q3201627.069-617.735106.8033.128-480.735
Q42016-0.882-587.866100.7123.384-484.652
Q1201719.68-571.06752.453.294-495.643
Q2201751.875-630.07475.4043.379-499.416

 

Figure 2 shows the net IIP over time along with the contribution of each instrument type to it. Net Portfolio Investment fell just over €59bn, or 10%, its largest fall in both absolute and percentage terms since Q3 2015. Net Other Investment grew for the first quarter since Q1 2016, increasing 44%. Reserve Assets have been stable for the last four quarters.

 

X-axis labelGeneral GovernmentMonetary Financial InstitutionsOther Financial IntermediariesNon-Financial Companies
31 Dec 2016525448562740
31 Mar 2017634477607788
30 Jun 2017608452615784

 

For Portfolio Investment assets, equity and debt securities (see Table 3(a) for this breakdown), the sector of the non-resident issuer is collected. Analysing this data shows that Irish residents hold debt as follows:

  • €608bn issued by foreign Governments
  • €452bn issued by foreign Monetary Financial Institutions (including Money Market Investment Funds)
  • €615bn issued by foreign Other Financial Intermediaries (including Non-Money Market Investment Funds)
  • €784bn issued by foreign Non-Financial Companies

The data shown are consistent with that transmitted bi-annually to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for their Coordinated Portfolio Investment Survey (CPIS). More information and comparable country data are available http://cpis.imf.org/

These results are also consistent with the national annual Resident Holdings of Portfolio Investment release.

X-axis labelDirect InvestmentOther SectorsMonetary Financial InstitutionsMonetary AuthorityGeneral Government
Q32016661.2911054.774209.51716.447139.165
Q42016674.3861079.553205.58317.832134.272
Q12017646.341060.743204.03516.678139.457
Q22017654.3221017.208204.32516.744141.498

Gross External Debtis €2.03 trillion at end-June 2017.

At 30th June 2017, the gross external debt of all resident sectors (i.e. general government, the monetary authority, financial and non-financial corporations and households) amounted to €2,034bn. This represents a decrease of €33bn in the stock of financial liabilities to non-residents (other than those arising from issues of Irish equities and derivatives contracts) compared to the level shown at 31st March 2017 (€2,067bn) – see Table 6(a).

Points of note are:

  • General government foreign borrowing increased by €2bn to €141bn at end-June 2017.
  • Liabilities of the Monetary Authority consisting entirely of short term loans and deposits are unchanged at €16.7bn. These liabilities are to the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) and include balances in the TARGET2 settlement system of the ESCB.
  • Debt liabilities of Monetary financial institutions (credit institutions and money market funds) remained €204bn at end-June 2017.
  • The liabilities of Other sectors at €1,017bn decreased €43.5bn on the previous quarter. This was driven by a fall in long term debt as short term debt has barely changed.
  • Direct investment liabilities increased by €8bn to €654bn in the quarter.
  • The Net External Debt position was -€1,070bn at end-June 2017 i.e. assets exceeded liabilities - see Table 6(b)

  1Gross external debt represents the stock of Ireland's liabilities to non-residents other than equity and financial derivatives.

Table 1(a) International Investment Position (IIP) classified by Financial Instrument € million
ItemQ2 2015Q3 2015Q4 2015Q1 2016Q2 2016Q3 2016Q4 2016Q1 2017Q2 2017
Foreign Assets     
  Direct Investment Abroad1762,273722,762835,530786,006772,789796,434798,787830,315826,914
  Portfolio Investment2,120,4422,037,6242,155,6162,086,7772,181,6932,245,1162,348,5042,506,3902,460,004
  Other Investment 21,217,2581,206,0011,313,2921,284,5201,208,6611,207,9471,215,8941,179,3451,157,251
  Reserve Assets1,9091,8732,0132,9372,7623,1283,3843,2943,379
  Total Foreign Assets4,101,8823,968,2604,306,4514,160,2404,165,9054,252,6254,366,5694,519,3444,447,548
          
Foreign Liabilities         
  Direct Investment in Ireland1651,301660,694815,831804,763772,947769,365799,669810,635775,039
  Portfolio Investment2,776,3622,661,4322,846,1412,724,2242,790,7322,862,8512,936,3703,077,4573,090,078
  Other Investment21,162,7311,143,1131,155,0121,124,5531,083,6411,101,1441,115,1821,126,8951,081,847
  Total Foreign Liabilities 4,590,3944,465,2394,816,9844,653,5404,647,3204,733,3604,851,2215,014,9874,946,964
 
Net International Investment Position (IIP)         
  Direct Investment1110,97262,06819,699-18,757-15827,069-88219,68051,875
  Portfolio Investment-655,920-623,808-690,525-637,447-609,039-617,735-587,866-571,067-630,074
  Other Investment254,52762,888158,280159,967125,020106,803100,71252,45075,404
  Reserve Assets1,9091,8732,0132,9372,7623,1283,3843,2943,379
          
  Total (Net IIP)-488,512-496,979-510,533-493,300-481,415-480,735-484,652-495,643-499,416
1Reflecting the directional principle for reclassifying Direct Investment (see background notes).
2Includes financial derivatives and trade credits; in the case of liabilities this category also includes life insurance liabilities to non-residents.
Table 1(b) International Investment Position (IIP) classified by Institutional Sector € million
ItemQ2 2015Q3 2015Q4 2015Q1 2016Q2 2016Q3 2016Q4 2016Q1 2017Q2 2017
Foreign Assets      
  General Government11,08210,96710,7529,9989,97310,52010,25410,50610,413
  Monetary Authority119,59819,59421,81722,02522,52325,38623,73129,22035,192
  Monetary Financial Institutions2713,852711,661746,888687,752735,110715,347746,958753,656733,931
  Other Sectors33,357,3483,226,0393,526,9953,440,4653,398,2993,501,3723,585,6263,725,9623,668,014
    of which:         
      Other Financial Intermediaries2,598,0812,503,9742,701,4562,678,8322,640,3922,716,6742,789,1272,914,7592,879,933
      Non-Financial Companies4759,267722,065825,539761,633757,907784,698796,499811,203788,081
Total Foreign Assets4,101,8823,968,2604,306,4514,160,2404,165,9054,252,6254,366,5694,519,3444,447,550
         
Foreign Liabilities         
  General Government144,100146,041142,914146,658138,674139,570134,688139,871141,900
  Monetary Authority126,87218,86919,28717,41019,79016,44717,83216,67816,744
  Monetary Financial Institutions2705,386704,405735,368678,318718,197706,290724,226726,419714,609
  Other Sectors33,714,0373,595,9243,919,4143,811,1543,770,6583,871,0523,974,4764,132,0184,073,710
    of which:         
      Other Financial Intermediaries2,553,1042,466,3542,669,9162,635,0802,593,3742,670,6902,725,6162,867,5702,847,625
      Non-Financial Companies41,160,9331,129,5701,249,4981,176,0741,177,2841,200,3621,248,8601,264,4481,226,085
Total Foreign Liabilities 4,590,3944,465,2394,816,9844,653,5404,647,3204,733,3604,851,2215,014,9874,946,963
         
Net International Investment Position (IIP)         
  General Government-133,018 -135,074 -132,162 -136,660 -128,701 -129,050 -124,434 -129,365 -131,487
  Monetary Authority1-7,274 7252,5304,6152,7338,9395,89912,54218,448
  Monetary Financial Institutions 28,4667,25611,5209,43416,9139,05722,73227,23719,322
  Other Sectors3-356,689 -369,885 -392,419 -370,689 -372,359 -369,680 -388,850 -406,056 -405,696
    of which:         
      Other Financial Intermediaries44,97737,62031,54043,75247,01845,98463,51147,18932,308
      Non-Financial Companies4-401,666 -407,505 -423,959 -414,441 -419,377 -415,664 -452,361 -453,245 -438,004
Total (Net IIP)-488,512 -496,979 -510,533 -493,300 -481,415 -480,735 -484,652 -495,643 -499,413
1Central Bank of Ireland.
2Covering licensed credit institutions and money market funds.
3Other sectors includes financial corporations other than the Monetary Authority and Monetary Financial Institutions, non-financial service and manufacturing
companies and other industrial enterprises as well as (implicitly) households (see Background Notes). The gross liabilities to non-residents of financial
corporations covered in other sectors tend to be very significant.
4Including households.
Table 2 International Investment Position (IIP) - IFSC and non-IFSC activity by Institutional Sector € million
 31 Mar 2017 30 Jun 2017
ItemIFSCnon-IFSCTotal IFSCnon-IFSCTotal
Foreign Assets       
  General Government010,50610,506 010,41310,413
  Monetary Authority1029,22029,220 035,19235,192
  Monetary Financial Institutions2691,70061,956753,656 677,12556,806733,931
  Other Sectors32,786,172939,7903,725,962 2,747,338920,6763,668,014
    of which:       
      Other Financial Intermediaries2,786,172128,5872,914,759 2,747,338132,5952,879,933
      Non-Financial Companies40811,203811,203 0788,081788,081
Total Foreign Assets3,477,8721,041,4724,519,344 3,424,4631,023,0874,447,550
        
Foreign Liabilities       
  General Government0139,871139,871 0141,900141,900
  Monetary Authority1016,67816,678 016,74416,744
  Monetary Financial Institutions2669,92156,498726,419 662,93551,674714,609
  Other Sectors32,929,0101,203,0084,132,018 2,873,0921,200,6184,073,710
    of which:       
      Other Financial Intermediaries2,929,010-61,440 2,867,570 2,873,092-25,467 2,847,625
      Non-Financial Companies401,264,4481,264,448 01,226,0851,226,085
Total Foreign Liabilities 3,598,9311,416,0565,014,987 3,536,0271,410,9374,946,964
       
Net International Investment Position (IIP)       
  General Government0-129,365 -129,365  0-131,487 -131,487
  Monetary Authority1012,54212,542 018,44818,448
  Monetary Financial Institutions221,7795,45827,237 14,1905,13219,322
  Other Sectors3-142,838 -263,218 -406,056  -125,754 -279,942 -405,696
    of which:       
      Other Financial Intermediaries-142,838 190,02747,189 -125,754 158,06232,308
      Non-Financial Companies40-453,245 -453,245  0-438,004 -438,004
Total (Net IIP)-121,059 -374,586 -495,643  -111,564 -387,852 -499,414
1Central Bank of Ireland.
2Covering licensed credit institutions and money market funds.
3Other sectors includes financial corporations other than the Monetary Authority and Monetary Financial Institutions, non-financial
service and manufacturing companies and other industrial enterprises as well as (implicitly) households (see Background Notes).
The gross liabilities to non-residents of financial corporations covered in other sectors tend to be very significant.
4Including households.
Table 3(a) International Investment Position (IIP) - Detailed Data  € million
ItemQ3 2016Q4 2016Q1 2017Q2 2017
Foreign Assets   
  Direct Investment Abroad1796,434798,787830,315826,914
    Equity capital and reinvested earnings 714,026725,008738,614753,746
    Other capital82,40773,77991,70173,168
     
  Portfolio Investment 2,245,1162,348,5042,506,3902,460,004
    Equity 865,269916,776976,156990,051
        Monetary authority20000
        General government4,2374,2594,1034,242
        Monetary financial institutions32,5192,1702,0632,011
        Other sectors858,513910,348969,989983,798
     
    Debt instruments1,379,8471,431,7281,530,2341,469,953
      Bonds and notes963,216991,6381,070,6241,049,001
        Monetary authority216,08816,86118,57219,724
        General government1,8871,9171,9311,927
        Monetary financial institutions3108,880104,34494,93883,538
        Other sectors836,361868,516955,183943,811
     
      Money market instruments416,631440,091459,611420,952
        Monetary authority22,0671,8741,9381,965
        General government0000
        Monetary financial institutions3300,569333,910351,896327,460
        Other sectors113,994104,306105,77791,527
     
  Other Investment 1,207,9471,215,8941,179,3451,157,253
    Loans, currency and deposits841,762844,074783,782791,162
        Monetary authority23,2307404,5449,253
        General government2,5922,1812,4422,471
        Monetary financial institutions 3267,209271,514273,569290,623
        Other sectors568,731569,639503,227488,815
     
    Trade Credits47,90651,97447,63647,996
        General government0000
        Other sectors47,90651,97447,63647,996
     
    Other assets4318,281319,846347,928318,096
        Monetary authority2873872872872
        General government1,6741,8601,9941,736
        Monetary financial institutions331,80830,24825,89225,147
        Other sectors283,926286,866319,170290,341
     
  Reserve assets3,1283,3843,2943,380
    Monetary gold217201212199
    Special drawing rights815817829830
    Reserve Position in the IMF1,0091,0291,025985
    Foreign Exchange338379461571
    Other749956764792
     
Total Foreign Assets4,252,6254,366,5694,519,3444,447,551
1Reflecting the directional principle for reclassifying Direct Investment (see Background Notes).
2Central Bank of Ireland.
3Covering licensed credit institutions and money market funds.
4Includes financial derivatives.
Table 3(b) International Investment Position (IIP) - Detailed Data  € million
ItemQ3 2016Q4 2016Q1 2017Q2 2017
Foreign Liabilities  
  Direct Investment in Ireland1769,365799,669810,635775,039
    Equity capital and reinvested earnings 638,994706,545748,828706,603
    Other capital130,37193,12461,80768,435
     
  Portfolio Investment 2,862,8512,936,3703,077,4573,090,078
    Equity 2,371,2042,449,7102,594,4332,617,600
        Monetary authority20000
        General government0000
        Monetary financial institutions3424,798452,419459,680453,711
        Other sectors1,946,4051,997,2912,134,7532,163,889
     
    Debt instruments491,647486,660483,024472,477
      Bonds and notes473,339472,303464,906451,515
        Monetary authority20000
        General government82,22778,97782,46083,316
        Monetary financial institutions324,74218,47129,86329,865
        Other sectors366,370374,855352,583338,335
     
      Money market instruments18,30814,35718,11820,962
        Monetary authority20000
        General government3,1601,2873,1484,675
        Monetary financial institutions313,74512,55314,57715,416
        Other sectors1,403517393870
     
  Other Investment 1,101,1441,115,1821,126,8951,081,847
    Loans, currency and deposits582,746597,330560,214547,609
        Monetary authority216,44717,83216,67816,744
        General government53,77854,00853,84953,507
        Monetary financial institutions3161,732165,246149,445147,360
        Other sectors350,790360,246340,242329,996
     
    Trade Credits36,06640,05734,39333,518
        General government0000
        Other sectors36,06640,05734,39333,518
     
    Other liabilities 4482,331477,796532,288500,721
        Monetary authority20000
        General government274283281271
        Monetary financial institutions336,16933,03630,87131,378
        Other sectors445,888444,477501,136469,071
     
Total Foreign Liabilities4,733,3604,851,2215,014,9874,946,964
1Reflecting the directional principle for reclassifying Direct Investment (see Background Notes).
2Central Bank of Ireland.
3Covering licensed credit institutions and money market funds.
4Includes financial derivatives and also includes life insurance liabilities to non-residents.
Table 4 International Investment Position (IIP) showing IFSC and non–IFSC activity  € million
ItemQ3 2016Q4 2016Q1 2017Q2 2017
Foreign Assets
  Direct Investment Abroad1796,434798,787830,315826,914
    - IFSC75,71780,17784,55884,917
    - Non-IFSC720,717718,610745,757741,997
  Portfolio Investment2,245,1162,348,5042,506,3902,460,004
    - IFSC2,097,9762,196,4932,351,2162,307,053
    - Non-IFSC147,140152,011155,174152,951
  Other Investment21,207,9471,215,8941,179,3451,157,251
    - IFSC1,068,2151,068,8091,042,0981,032,493
    - Non-IFSC139,732147,085137,247124,758
  Reserve Assets3,1283,3843,2943,379
    - IFSC0000
    - Non-IFSC3,1283,3843,2943,379
Total Foreign Assets4,252,6254,366,5694,519,3444,447,548
    - IFSC3,241,9083,345,4793,477,8723,424,463
    - Non-IFSC1,010,7161,021,0901,041,4721,023,085
     
Foreign Liabilities    
  Direct Investment in Ireland1769,365799,669810,635775,039
    - IFSC245,362238,962256,655214,970
    - Non-IFSC524,003560,707553,980560,069
  Portfolio Investment2,862,8512,936,3703,077,4573,090,078
    - IFSC2,225,2202,310,5072,416,0862,437,356
    - Non-IFSC637,631625,863661,371652,722
  Other Investment21,101,1441,115,1821,126,8951,081,847
    - IFSC899,501907,322926,190883,701
    - Non-IFSC201,643207,860200,705198,146
Total Foreign Liabilities 4,733,3604,851,2215,014,9874,946,964
    - IFSC3,370,0833,456,7913,598,9313,536,027
    - Non-IFSC1,363,2771,394,4301,416,0561,410,937
     
Net International Investment Position (IIP)    
  Direct Investment127,069-88219,68051,875
    - IFSC-169,645-158,785-172,097-130,053
    - Non-IFSC196,714157,903191,777181,928
  Portfolio Investment-617,735-587,866-571,067-630,074
    - IFSC-127,244-114,014-64,870-130,303
    - Non-IFSC-490,491-473,852-506,197-499,771
  Other Investment2106,803100,71252,45075,404
    - IFSC168,714161,487115,908148,792
    - Non-IFSC-61,911-60,775-63,458-73,388
  Reserve Assets3,1283,3843,2943,379
    - IFSC0000
    - Non-IFSC3,1283,3843,2943,379
Total (Net IIP)-480,735-484,652-495,643-499,416
    - IFSC-128,175-111,312-121,059-111,564
    - Non-IFSC-352,562-373,344-374,586-387,854
1Reflecting the directional principle for reclassifying Direct Investment (see Background Notes).
2Includes financial derivatives and trade credits; in the case of liabilities this category also includes life insurance
liabilities to non-residents.
Table 5 International Investment Position (IIP) - 30 June 2017 - Reconciliation of IIP and BOP Flows € million
ItemOpening Position 01/04/17 Bop Flows in Quarter Valuation and Other Changes Closing Position 30/06/17
Foreign Assets 
 
  Direct Investment Abroad1830,315 22,644 -26,045  826,914
    Equity capital and reinvested earnings 738,614 36,040 -20,908  753,746
    Other capital91,701 -13,396  -5,137  73,168
        
  Portfolio Investment 2,506,390 38,963 -85,349  2,460,004
    Equity 976,156 27,452 -13,557  990,051
    Debt instruments 1,530,234 11,511 -71,792  1,469,953
      Bonds and notes1,070,624 34,990 -56,613  1,049,001
      Money market instruments459,611 -23,478  -15,181  420,952
        
  Other Investment 1,179,345 46,510 -68,604  1,157,251
    Loans, currency and deposits783,782 44,912 -37,533  791,161
    Other2395,563 1,599 -31,072  366,090
        
  Reserve Assets3,294 163 -78  3,379
        
Total Foreign Assets4,519,344 108,280 -180,076  4,447,548
        
Foreign Liabilities       
        
  Direct Investment in Ireland1810,635 26,019 -61,615  775,039
    Equity capital and reinvested earnings 748,828 17,876 -60,101  706,603
    Other capital61,807 8,143 -1,515  68,435
        
  Portfolio Investment 3,077,457 95,725 -83,104  3,090,078
    Equity 2,594,433 92,025 -68,858  2,617,600
    Debt instruments 483,024 3,700 -14,247  472,477
      Bonds and notes464,906 367 -13,758  451,515
      Money market instruments18,118 3,333 -489  20,962
        
  Other Investment 1,126,895 -312  -44,736  1,081,847
    Loans, currency and deposits560,214 1,423 -14,028  547,609
    Other2566,681 -1,735  -30,707  534,239
        
Total Foreign Liabilities5,014,987 121,432 -189,455  4,946,964
1Reflecting the directional principle for reclassifying Direct Investment (see background notes).
2Includes financial derivatives and trade credits; in the case of liabilities this category also includes life insurance liabilities to non-residents.
*Data suppressed for confidentiality reasons.
Table 6(a) Gross External Debt1€ million
31 Mar 2017 30 Jun 2017
ItemIFSC non-IFSC Total IFSC non-IFSC Total
General Government0 139,457 139,457 0 141,498 141,498
  Short-term0 5,272 5,272 0 6,742 6,742
    Money market instruments0 3,148 3,148 0 4,675 4,675
    Loans0 2,124 2,124 0 2,067 2,067
  Long-term 0 134,185 134,185 0 134,756 134,756
    Bonds and notes0 82,460 82,460 0 83,316 83,316
    Loans0 51,725 51,725 0 51,440 51,440
            
Monetary Authority20 16,678 16,678 0 16,744 16,744
  Short-term0 16,678 16,678 0 16,744 16,744
    Loans and deposits0 16,678 16,678 0 16,744 16,744
  Long-term 0 0 0 0 0 0
    Other debt liabilities0 0 0 0 0 0
            
Monetary Financial Institutions3168,164 35,871 204,035 174,881 29,444 204,325
  Short-term* * 145,730 124,528 22,397 146,925
    Money market instruments* * 14,577 15,416 0 15,416
    Loans and deposits103,692 27,461 131,153 109,112 22,397 131,509
  Long-term 50,040 8,265 58,305 50,353 7,047 57,400
    Bonds and notes* * 29,863 24,062 5,803 29,865
    Loans16,948 1,344 18,292 14,697 1,154 15,851
    Other debt liabilities* * 10,150 11,594 90 11,684
            
Other Sectors4957,293 103,450 1,060,743 910,753 106,455 1,017,208
  Short-term* * 206,849 171,527 35,443 206,970
    Money market instruments* * 393 193 677 870
    Loans and deposits161,447 10,616 172,063 161,410 11,172 172,582
    Trade credits 11,369 23,024 34,393 9,924 23,594 33,518
  Long-term * * 853,894 739,226 71,012 810,238
    Bonds and notes* * 352,583 331,821 6,514 338,335
    Loans144,773 23,406 168,179 133,409 24,005 157,414
    Other debt liabilities294,486 38,646 333,132 273,996 40,493 314,489
            
Direct Investment5168,742 477,598 646,340 168,150 486,172 654,322
    Debt liabilities to affiliated enterprises 4,474 162,351 166,825 4,362 181,111 185,473
    Debt liabilities to direct investors164,268 315,247 479,515 163,788 305,061 468,849
            
Gross External Debt1,294,199 773,054 2,067,250 1,253,784 780,313 2,034,086
1Gross external debt represents the stock of Ireland's liabilities to non-residents other than equity and financial derivatives.
2Central Bank of Ireland.
3Covering licensed credit institutions and money market funds.
4Other sectors includes financial corporations other than the Monetary Authority and Monetary Financial Institutions,
non-financial service and manufacturing companies and other industrial enterprises as well as (implicitly)
households (see Background Notes). The gross liabilities to non-residents of financial corporations covered in other sectors
tend to be very significant.
5Covering inter affiliate loans, non-equity securities, trade credits and other debt liabilities. Debt liabilities to affiliated
enterprises refers to direct investment abroad while debt liabilities to direct investors refers to direct investment in Ireland.
*Suppressed for confidentiality reasons.
Table 6(b) External Assets in Debt Instruments1€ million
31 Mar 201730 Jun 2017
ItemIFSC non-IFSC Total IFSC non-IFSC Total
General Government0 4,098 4,098 0 4,398 4,398
  Short-term0 682 682 0 981 981
    Money market instruments0 0 0 0 0 0
    Loans and Deposits0 682 682 0 981 981
  Long-term 0 3,416 3,416 0 3,417 3,417
    Bonds and notes0 1,917 1,917 0 1,927 1,927
    Loans0 1,499 1,499 0 1,490 1,490
            
Monetary Authority20 19,475 19,475 0 30,942 30,942
  Short-term0 2,614 2,614 0 11,218 11,218
    Money market instruments0 1,874 1,874 0 1,965 1,965
    Loans and deposits0 740 740 0 9,253 9,253
  Long-term 0 16,861 16,861 0 19,724 19,724
    Bonds and notes0 16,861 16,861 0 19,724 19,724
            
Monetary Financial Institutions3662,103 55,571 717,674 660,947 48,184 709,131
  Short-term* * 577,562 568,749 24,108 592,857
    Money market instruments* * 333,910 327,070 390 327,460
    Loans and deposits214,434 29,218 243,652 241,679 23,718 265,397
  Long-term * * 140,112 92,198 24,076 116,274
    Bonds and notes85,739 18,605 104,344 66,398 17,140 83,538
    Loans20,700 7,162 27,862 18,477 6,749 25,226
    Other debt Assets* * 7,906 7,323 187 7,510
            
Other Sectors41,590,281 137,820 1,728,101 1,585,607 113,994 1,699,601
  Short-term285,266 51,490 336,756 276,765 50,334 327,099
    Money market instruments102,626 1,680 104,306 89,723 1,804 91,527
    Loans and deposits158,239 22,237 180,476 165,098 22,478 187,576
    Trade credit assets 24,401 27,573 51,974 21,944 26,052 47,996
  Long-term 1,305,015 86,330 1,391,345 1,308,842 63,660 1,372,502
    Bonds and notes* * 868,516 905,466 38,345 943,811
    Loans* * 389,163 301,121 118 301,239
    Other debt Assets87,022 46,644 133,666 102,255 25,197 127,452
            
Direct Investment5221,450 433,591 655,041 202,105 456,949 659,054
    Debt asset claims on affiliated enterprises5,139 231,243 236,382 5,022 253,619 258,641
    Debt asset claims on direct investors216,311 202,348 418,659 197,083 203,330 400,413
            
Reserve Assets0 1,335 1,335 0 1,363 1,363
            
External Assets in Debt Instruments2,473,834 651,890 3,125,724 2,448,659 655,830 3,104,489
            
Net External Debt6-1,153,287 139,189 -1,014,100 -1,194,875 124,483 -1,070,403
1External Assets in Debt Instruments represents the stock of Ireland's claims on non-residents other than equity and financial derivatives.
2Central Bank of Ireland.
3Covering licensed credit institutions and money market funds.
4Other sectors includes financial corporations other than the Monetary Authority and Monetary Financial Institutions, non-financial
service and manufacturing companies and other industrial enterprises as well as (implicitly) households (see Background Notes).
The gross claims on non-residents of financial corporations covered in other sectors tend to be very significant.
5Covering inter affiliate loans, non-equity securities, trade credits and other debt assets. Debt claims on affiliated enterprises refers to
direct investment abroad while debt claims on direct investors refers to direct investment in Ireland.
6Net External Debt equals Gross External Debt (from table 6a) minus External Assets in Debt Instruments. A negative sign indicates
a net Asset position.
*Data suppressed for confidentiality reasons.

Background Notes

Definition

The international investment position (or IIP) is a point in time statistical statement of the value and composition of the stock of an economy’s foreign financial assets, or the economy’s claims on the rest of the world, and the value and composition of the stock of an economy’s financial liabilities (or obligations) to the rest of the world.

The IMF External Debt Manual defines external debt to be a point in time statistical statement of the value and composition of the stock of an economy’s gross foreign financial liabilities to the rest of the world. The liabilities referred to cover those arising from Irish residents issuing debt securities such as bonds, notes and money market instruments to non-residents, as well as any loans received from and outstanding to non-residents, and any trade payables due to non-residents. In essence, external debt refers to financial obligations to non-residents other than those arising from transactions in equity or financial derivative contracts.

For more detailed methodological information see Methodology Document (PDF 298KB)  

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