RAMALLAH, Monday, June 29, 2020 (WAFA) - An incessant deficit in the Current Account (goods, services, income, current transfers) totaled $349 million in first quarter 2020, today said a joint statement by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) and the Palestine Monetary Authority (PMA) on the preliminary results of the Palestinian Balance of Payments.

This deficit in current account was mainly triggered by the deficit of the Trade Balance of Goods, which reached $1,237 million, as well as the deficit in Services Balance, which amounted to $242 million, they said.

The surplus in Income Account (compensations of employees and investments income) amounted to $685 million. This surplus was due to compensations of the employees working in Israel, which reached $663 million. As for the received investments income, it amounted to $47 million; and was mainly caused by the income received on the portfolio investments abroad, in addition to the interest received on the Palestinian deposits in banks abroad.

The Current Transfers achieved a surplus value amounted to $446 million with a decrease of 3% compared to the previous quarter. The total transfers from abroad amounted to $532 million, of which 21% were the transfers to the government sector (with a decrease of 2% compared to the previous quarter), while the percentage of the transfers to other sectors reached 79%.  The donors’ current transfers constituted 18% of total transfers from abroad.

The preliminary results showed a surplus value for the Capital and Financial Account amounted to $556 million, the surplus in the Capital and Financial Account was mainly caused by the surplus in Financial Account which amounted to $484 million. There was an increase in the reserve assets at PMA amounted to $80 million, compared to an increase of $56 million in the previous quarter.

M.K.