U.S. Direct Investment Abroad: Balance of payments and direct investment position data

The balance of payments (international transactions) data cover the foreign affiliates’ transactions with their U.S. parent, so these data focus on the U.S. parent’s share, or interest, in its affiliates rather than on the affiliates’ overall size or level of operations. These data are essential to the compilation of the U.S. international transactions accounts, the international investment position, and the national income and product accounts. The major data items include capital flows, which measure the funds that U.S. parents provide to their foreign affiliates, and income, which measures the return on those funds. The data also cover royalties and license fees and other service charges that parents receive from or pay to their affiliates. All of these items are flow data and provide measurement for a particular time frame, such as for a quarter or a year.

Direct investment position data are stock data and are cumulative; they measure the total outstanding level of U.S. direct investment abroad at yearend. Estimates are provided both at historical cost and in terms of current-period prices. Two alternative official measures of the position are presented in current-period prices—one with direct investment recorded at current cost, and the other with direct investment recorded at market value. For the historical-cost estimates, tables are published by country and by industry.