RAMALLAH, March 19, 2018 (WAFA) - The primary results of the International Investment Position (IIP) (external assets – foreign liabilities) for Palestine at the end of fourth  quarter 2017 revealed that the net IIP amounted to about $1,373 million, which means that the Palestinian economy’s investments outside Palestine outweighs investments in Palestine from abroad, a joint report by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) and the Palestine Monetary Authority (PMA) said on Monday.

The resident cash deposits in foreign banks and foreign exchange in the Palestinian economy accounted for the bulk of the external assets, constituting 65.2% of the total value of external assets, they said.

The total stocks of External Assets for Palestinian economy amounted to $6,455 million, the Foreign Direct Investment abroad contributed to 6.5%, Portfolio Investments abroad reached 16.3%, while Other Foreign Investments abroad (mainly currency and deposits) reached 70.3% and Reserve Assets amounted to 6.9%, at sectoral level, the external investments of banks sector represented a large share of the external assets, standing at 73.6% of the total value of external assets for Palestinian economy.

The total stocks of Foreign Liabilities in Palestine (Stocks of non-residents invested in Palestine) amounted to $5,082 million, the Foreign Direct Investment in Palestine contributed to 53.2%, Portfolio Investments in Palestine reached 13.1% and Other Investments in Palestine (mainly loans and deposits from abroad) amounted to 33.7%, at sectoral level, the foreign investments in banks sector contributed a major value in the foreign liabilities, represented by 36.4% of the total value of foreign liabilities on Palestinian economy.

The Gross External Debt on the Palestinian economic sectors reached $1,720 million, the debt on government sector represented 60.5%, while debt on banks sector reached 35.1%, and debt on other sectors (nonbank financial corporations, non-financial corporations, NGOs and household sector) amounted to 4.1%, and the lending between affiliated companies reached 0.3%.

M.K.