External sector

External sector statistics provide information on a country’s economic relationships with the rest of the world. The data on external transactions and stocks form an important basis for economic policy decisions.

Time series

Blue digital binary data on computer screen

Balance of payments, international investment position, external debt, external position of the Bundesbank, international reserves, direct investments, external position of non-banks.

Foreign direct investment: new peaks

Germany’s outward foreign direct investment (FDI) reached a new peak of €1,167 billion at year-end 2017. In the opposite direction, FDI rose to a record level of €741 billion. The United States continued to be the main destination for German FDI, with stocks totalling €225 billion, or around 20%. The significance of China as an investment location remained comparatively limited with a share of just under €77 billion, or 7%.