Second quarter Balance of Payments surplus reaches $19.6bn

Yet visible trade deficit in second quarter soared to $125.6bn.

Hong Kong recorded a $19.6 billion surplus in its Balance of Payments account in the year’s second quarter, representing 4.4% of gross domestic product, according to figures released by the Census & Statistics Department Thursday.

A current-account surplus of $4.6 billion was recorded, with a net outflow of financial non-reserve assets amounting to $13.7 billion.

With imports of goods rising faster than exports, the visible trade deficit rose from $97.2 billion in last year’s second quarter to $125.6 billion in this year’s second quarter.

The invisible trade surplus rose to $112.8 billion, as exports of services increased faster than imports. Overall, a combined visible and invisible trade deficit of $12.8 billion was recorded in the second quarter.

For factor income flows, the external factor income inflow amounted to $281.7 billion while outflow stood at $257.4 billion, yielding a net inflow of $24.3 billion in the second quarter.