Im Mai 2023 wies die Leistungsbilanz einen Überschuss von 9 Mrd. € auf (nach einem Plus von 4 Mrd. € im Vormonat).

How might payments in the financial industry be made in future? The latest edition of the Bundesbank’s Monthly Report outlines various possible options in a world in which distributed ledger technology (DLT) is increasingly being used to settle transactions between banks. Central bank money must remain the number one choice for large-value payments, according to the Bank’s experts, though that does not necessarily mean that central bank digital currency needs to be provided directly in a DLT network setup. Nor does it entirely rule out the use of other forms of money. 

German economic output is likely to have gone up slightly again in the second quarter of 2023, according to the Monthly Report. Private consumption has stabilised after previously having fallen. According to the experts, the fact that the labour market remained in good shape, wages rose sharply and price inflation did not continue to accelerate contributed to this development. Meanwhile, the decline in foreign demand was a drag on industry and the rise in funding costs dampened domestic investment. The Bundesbank is expecting the economy to recover haltingly later in the year.

The G20 finance ministers and central bank governors are set to meet in Gandhinagar, India, from 17 to 18 July. Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel will attend the two-day meeting, which will focus on issues including the current situation in the global economy, sustainability in the financial system and the regulation of crypto-assets.

Die Bruttoemissionen am deutschen Rentenmarkt lagen im Mai 2023 mit 168,5 Mrd € deutlich über dem Wert des Vormonats (127,9 Mrd €). Nach Abzug der Tilgungen und unter Berücksichtigung der Eigenbestandsveränderungen der Emittenten stieg der Umlauf heimischer Rentenwerte um 34,0 Mrd €.

Germany’s current account recorded a surplus of €8.9 billion in May 2023, down €13.4 billion on the previous month’s level. This was because invisible current transactions, which comprise services as well as primary and secondary income, switched to a deficit. The surplus in the goods account remained virtually unchanged.

Die aggregierte harte Kernkapitalquote ist im ersten Quartal 2023 auf 15,53 % gestiegen.