Page 21 - CE Outlook Regions 2023

2.2.2 External environment

The Bank of Estonia, the country’s central bank, said that the surplus
on the current account of the Estonian balance of payments was €329
million in the third quarter of 2022, or 3.5% of GDP, which was €213
million more than in the third quarter of 2021.

The net international investment position showed that at the end of the
quarter the external liabilities of Estonian residents exceeded their
external assets by €6.8 billion or 19% of the GDP of the previous four
quarters. The external assets of Estonian residents increased over the
year by €0.3 billion more than the external liabilities did, mainly
because of intra-group transactions.

The current account and the international investment position remained
within the limits of the European Union criteria for macroeconomic
imbalance. The deficit on the current account over the past three years
was 0.5% of GDP and the investment position of the past four quarters
was -19% of GDP.

Net lending (+) or borrowing (-), or the net total of the current and
capital accounts, saw a surplus of €477 million in the third quarter of
2022. The surplus of the balance of payments increased from 3.2% of
GDP in the third quarter of 2021 to 5.1% of GDP.

According to Statistics Estonia, in the third quarter of 2022, exports
were up by 16% and imports by 22%. Trade was mainly boosted by the
increased exports and imports of mineral products as well as by rising
prices in general. In September, Estonia’s exports of goods amounted
to nearly €1.9 billion and imports to €2.1 billion at current prices. The
trade deficit was €155 million which is €92 million more than in
September last year.

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