Current Account in Denmark

The current account is the section of the balance of payments that records Denmark's transactions with the rest of the world in goods and services, primary income (labour and capital) and secondary income (current transfers). It is compiled by Statistics Denmark.

It is the sum of the goods, services, primary income and secondary income balances, following the IMF methodology (BPM6), expressed in billions of Danish kroner (DKK). A positive figure is a surplus and a negative one a deficit; it equals net lending or borrowing vis-à-vis the rest of the world.

Denmark habitually posts a large current account surplus, underpinned by shipping, pharmaceutical exports and investment income. A robust surplus supports the Danish krone (pegged to the euro) and reinforces its net creditor position abroad.

The figures come with a lag of several weeks and are subject to revision as fuller information is incorporated. Shipping income (Maersk) adds volatility and can distort the balance in any single month.