Current Account Balance in Eurozone

It captures the euro area's current account balance vis-à-vis the rest of the world -goods, services, primary income and secondary income-, expressed in millions of euros and adjusted for seasonal and calendar effects. It is the headline figure of the ECB's monthly balance of payments release.

The ECB aggregates the national balance of payments statistics submitted by euro area central banks under the IMF's BPM6 methodology, and publishes the balance in millions of euros, adjusted for seasonal and calendar effects.

A sustained surplus indicates that the euro area saves more than it invests and lends to the rest of the world, while a deficit reflects the opposite; over the medium term it bears on the euro's exchange rate and the bloc's international investment position.

The seasonal adjustment is re-estimated with each release, so earlier months are revised. In addition, the aggregate balance masks sizeable differences between member states and is published with a lag of around two months.