EU current account surplus €113.4 bn

€52.1 bn surplus for trade in services

Overview

In the first quarter of 2026, the EU seasonally adjusted current account of the balance of payments recorded a surplus of €113.4 billion (+2.4% of GDP), compared with a surplus of €99.2 billion (+2.1% of GDP) in the fourth quarter of 2025 and a surplus of €104.9 billion (+2.3% of GDP) in the first quarter of 2025, according to estimates released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

EU current and capital accounts

In the first quarter of 2026 compared with the fourth quarter of 2025, based on seasonally adjusted data

the surplus of the goods account decreased (+€66.7 bn compared to +€89.0 bn),
the surplus of the services account increased (+€52.1 bn compared to +€43.9 bn),
the deficit of the primary income account turned into a surplus (+€25.3 bn compared to -€4.3 bn) and
the deficit of the secondary income account increased (-€30.7 bn compared to -€29.4 bn).

In addition, during the same period, the deficit of the capital account increased (-€3.8 bn compared to -€3.2 bn).

Current account balance

EU current and capital accounts – calendar and seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
		Current account	Goods	Services	Primary income	Secondary income	Current account as % of GDP	Capital account
Q1 2025	Credit	1490.8	700.8	406.2	341.7	42.2	32.1%	21.3
	Debit	1385.9	584.5	365.5	365.9	70.0	29.8%	20.1
	Balance	104.9	116.2	40.7	-24.2	-27.8	2.3%	1.2
Q2 2025	Credit	1430.3	658.8	395.3	331.5	44.7	30.5%	8.7
	Debit	1344.5	570.5	358.5	345.9	69.6	28.7%	26.2
	Balance	85.8	88.2	36.9	-14.4	-24.9	1.8%	-17.5
Q3 2025	Credit	1405.3	662.1	382.1	319.7	41.4	29.7%	17.2
	Debit	1334.4	567.2	361.8	333.9	71.6	28.2%	15.6
	Balance	70.8	94.9	20.3	-14.3	-30.1	1.5%	1.6
Q4 2025	Credit	1426.7	655.4	401.7	327.9	41.8	29.8%	17.9
	Debit	1327.5	566.5	357.7	332.2	71.1	27.7%	21.1
	Balance	99.2	89.0	43.9	-4.3	-29.4	2.1%	-3.2
Q1 2026	Credit	1439.4	648.0	412.6	338.0	40.9	30.0%	19.4
	Debit	1326.0	581.3	360.5	312.7	71.5	27.6%	23.2
	Balance	113.4	66.7	52.1	25.3	-30.7	2.4%	-3.8
Source: Eurostat ( dataset: bop_eu6_q )

Euro area current account – calendar and seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
	2025				2026
	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Q1
Current account balance	65.1	77.6	56.9	63.0	78.0
Balance of trade in goods	108.9	85.7	90.5	76.0	60.9
Balance of trade in services	26.2	35.5	29.5	45.6	38.2
Balance of primary income	-33.0	2.2	-15.9	-3.6	30.2
Balance of secondary income	-37.0	-45.8	-47.3	-55.1	-51.2
Current account balance as % of GDP	1.6%	2.0%	1.4%	1.6%	1.9%
Source: ECB

EU main partners

In the first quarter of 2026, based on non-seasonally adjusted data, the EU recorded current account surpluses with the United Kingdom (+€72.8 bn), Switzerland (+€38.7 bn), Brazil (+€11.1 bn), Canada (+€10.1 bn), Hong Kong (+€6.9 bn), Russia (+€3.5 bn) and Japan (+€3.2 bn). Deficits were registered with China (-€66.3 bn), the USA (-€15.8 bn), offshore financial centres (-€1.5 bn) and India (-€1.1 bn).

EU financial account

Based on non-seasonally adjusted data, in the first quarter of 2026

direct investment assets of the EU increased by €27.1 bn and
direct investment liabilities increased by €30.4 bn.

As a result, the EU was a net recipient of direct investment from the rest of the world with net inflows of €3.3 bn.

At the same time,

portfolio investment recorded a net inflow of €128.8 bn, and
other investment recorded a net outflow of €123.1 bn.

EU financial account – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
	2025				2026
	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Q1
Net financial account	146.0	78.9	83.7	-48.7	-9.0
Net acquisition of assets	764.9	329.5	349.7	282.9	603.8
Net incurrence of liabilities	618.9	250.6	266.1	331.6	612.8
Net direct investment	96.7	24.4	22.7	156.9	-3.3
Net acquisition of assets	156.2	-12.4	50.4	155.8	27.1
Net incurrence of liabilities	59.5	-36.8	27.8	-1.2	30.4
Net portfolio investment	-19.8	13.7	89.6	-183.9	-128.8
Net acquisition of assets	154.7	204.2	278.5	123.1	170.0
Net incurrence of liabilities	174.5	190.4	188.9	307.0	298.8
Net other investment	65.3	41.2	-37.9	-14.1	123.1
Net acquisition of assets	450.3	138.1	11.5	11.6	406.7
Net incurrence of liabilities	385.0	96.9	49.4	25.7	283.5
Net financial derivatives and employee stock options	0.8	-13.1	-11.4	-23.1	-31.4
Reserve assets	3.0	12.7	20.7	15.5	31.3
Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q )

Current account of Member States (including intra-EU flows)

As concerns the total (intra-EU plus extra-EU) current account balances of the EU Member States, based on available non-seasonally adjusted data, sixteen Member States recorded surpluses and ten recorded deficits in the first quarter of 2026 (data for France not available). The highest surpluses were observed in Germany (+€61.8 bn), the Netherlands (+€26.3 bn), Ireland (+€17.4 bn), Denmark (+€9.2 bn), Spain (+€8.9 bn), Sweden (+€8.8 bn) and Austria (+€7.3 bn). The largest deficits were recorded for Greece (-€6.6 bn), Romania (-€5.3 bn), Croatia (-€3.4 bn) and Bulgaria (-€2.4 bn).

Tables

EU current account, breakdown by main partner countries – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
Partner	Period	Credit	Debit	Balance
Total	Q1 2025	1416.3	1344.2	72.1
Total	Q1 2026	1373.9	1292.0	81.9
United Kingdom	Q1 2025	226.8	160.3	66.5
United Kingdom	Q1 2026	235.5	162.7	72.8
USA	Q1 2025	348.8	337.0	11.8
USA	Q1 2026	304.4	320.2	-15.8
Switzerland	Q1 2025	135.0	121.4	13.5
Switzerland	Q1 2026	125.1	86.3	38.7
China*	Q1 2025	81.2	132.7	-51.5
China*	Q1 2026	71.9	138.2	-66.3
Russia	Q1 2025	12.2	13.5	-1.3
Russia	Q1 2026	13.0	9.5	3.5
Japan	Q1 2025	35.8	31.5	4.3
Japan	Q1 2026	36.9	33.7	3.2
Canada	Q1 2025	26.4	15.8	10.6
Canada	Q1 2026	26.8	16.7	10.1
Hong Kong	Q1 2025	19.7	12.1	7.6
Hong Kong	Q1 2026	20.6	13.7	6.9
India	Q1 2025	22.6	25.1	-2.5
India	Q1 2026	23.4	24.4	-1.1
Brazil	Q1 2025	25.8	15.4	10.5
Brazil	Q1 2026	26.3	15.2	11.1
Offshore financial centres	Q1 2025	84.1	83.3	0.7
Offshore financial centres	Q1 2026	84.7	86.2	-1.5
Other countries	Q1 2025	417.7	408.2	9.5
Other countries	Q1 2026	426.1	398.9	27.2
* Excluding Hong Kong Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q )

EU goods account, breakdown by main partner countries – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
Partner	Period	Credit	Debit	Balance
Total	Q1 2025	686.2	576.7	109.4
Total	Q1 2026	634.9	573.7	61.2
United Kingdom	Q1 2025	90.5	43.5	47.0
United Kingdom	Q1 2026	97.0	46.2	50.8
USA	Q1 2025	171.0	75.0	96.0
USA	Q1 2026	119.4	78.2	41.2
Switzerland	Q1 2025	42.1	36.6	5.5
Switzerland	Q1 2026	48.5	35.2	13.3
China*	Q1 2025	55.7	118.3	-62.6
China*	Q1 2026	47.5	123.8	-76.3
Russia	Q1 2025	7.7	8.6	-0.9
Russia	Q1 2026	8.1	5.3	2.8
Japan	Q1 2025	17.4	14.4	3.0
Japan	Q1 2026	16.6	14.4	2.2
Canada	Q1 2025	12.1	6.3	5.8
Canada	Q1 2026	12.8	6.7	6.1
Hong Kong	Q1 2025	8.5	3.9	4.6
Hong Kong	Q1 2026	8.9	4.8	4.1
India	Q1 2025	12.0	14.1	-2.1
India	Q1 2026	12.2	13.4	-1.2
Brazil	Q1 2025	9.7	10.0	-0.3
Brazil	Q1 2026	10.2	9.8	0.4
Offshore financial centres	Q1 2025	19.8	13.8	6.0
Offshore financial centres	Q1 2026	17.9	15.4	2.5
Other countries	Q1 2025	248.0	236.0	12.0
Other countries	Q1 2026	244.6	225.2	19.4
* Excluding Hong Kong Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q )

EU services account, breakdown by main partner countries – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
Partner	Period	Credit	Debit	Balance
Total	Q1 2025	371.3	356.2	15.1
Total	Q1 2026	382.9	356.7	26.2
United Kingdom	Q1 2025	69.3	59.2	10.1
United Kingdom	Q1 2026	72.6	61.4	11.1
USA	Q1 2025	80.3	135.4	-55.1
USA	Q1 2026	81.2	129.6	-48.4
Switzerland	Q1 2025	40.6	24.7	15.9
Switzerland	Q1 2026	42.4	25.7	16.7
China*	Q1 2025	16.5	10.5	6.0
China*	Q1 2026	15.9	10.5	5.4
Russia	Q1 2025	1.3	1.0	0.4
Russia	Q1 2026	1.4	0.9	0.5
Japan	Q1 2025	10.5	5.7	4.8
Japan	Q1 2026	12.3	6.2	6.1
Canada	Q1 2025	6.5	4.6	1.8
Canada	Q1 2026	6.2	4.5	1.7
Hong Kong	Q1 2025	8.0	4.2	3.8
Hong Kong	Q1 2026	8.6	3.8	4.8
India	Q1 2025	6.9	9.7	-2.7
India	Q1 2026	7.2	9.4	-2.2
Brazil	Q1 2025	6.6	2.6	4.0
Brazil	Q1 2026	6.3	2.8	3.5
Offshore financial centres	Q1 2025	26.7	29.9	-3.2
Offshore financial centres	Q1 2026	30.5	28.0	2.5
Other countries	Q1 2025	106.2	73.0	33.2
Other countries	Q1 2026	107.0	77.7	29.3
* Excluding Hong Kong Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q )

EU direct investment, breakdown by main partner countries – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
Partner	Period	Net acquisition of Assets	Net incurrence of Liabilities	Net
Total	Q1 2025	156.2	59.5	96.7
Total	Q1 2026	27.1	30.4	-3.3
United Kingdom	Q1 2025	35.7	8.6	27.1
United Kingdom	Q1 2026	13.7	-4.5	18.2
USA	Q1 2025	104.6	26.6	77.9
USA	Q1 2026	-50.4	9.0	-59.4
Switzerland	Q1 2025	5.2	34.7	-29.6
Switzerland	Q1 2026	4.8	12.6	-7.8
China*	Q1 2025	4.5	2.5	2.0
China*	Q1 2026	2.8	2.0	0.7
Russia	Q1 2025	1.3	1.1	0.3
Russia	Q1 2026	1.6	0.3	1.2
Japan	Q1 2025	-8.4	-3.2	-5.2
Japan	Q1 2026	3.9	0.4	3.5
Canada	Q1 2025	1.7	-1.5	3.3
Canada	Q1 2026	-2.1	2.3	-4.4
Hong Kong	Q1 2025	1.7	-8.0	9.7
Hong Kong	Q1 2026	2.2	1.4	0.8
India	Q1 2025	-7.0	0.6	-7.6
India	Q1 2026	0.8	0.4	0.4
Brazil	Q1 2025	4.4	1.6	2.8
Brazil	Q1 2026	0.6	0.6	0.0
Offshore financial centres	Q1 2025	-21.2	-19.3	-1.9
Offshore financial centres	Q1 2026	3.4	-7.6	11.0
Other countries	Q1 2025	35.4	7.8	27.6
Other countries	Q1 2026	48.1	14.8	33.3
* Excluding Hong Kong Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_eu6_q )

Current accounts balances – national data (intra-EU + extra-EU) – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
	2025				2026
Countries	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Q1
Belgium	-0.9	-5.8	-1.7	-3.9	-0.2
Bulgaria	-1.0	-0.7	-1.1	-3.8	-2.4
Czechia	4.5	-2.2	-0.4	0.6	2.9
Denmark	8.2	14.1	14.6	14.3	9.2
Germany	65.3	41.8	44.8	50.1	61.8
Estonia	-0.2	0.1	-0.2	0.4	-0.1
Ireland	5.8	19.5	13.9	12.8	17.4
Greece	-5.0	-3.5	1.4	-7.0	-6.6
Spain	9.9	14.2	15.0	10.5	8.9
France ⁽¹⁾	-12.1	-11.1	-7.9	21.8	:
Croatia	-3.3	-1.7	3.9	-2.2	-3.4
Italy	-3.1	9.6	13.7	4.8	2.9
Cyprus	-1.0	-0.4	-0.1	-0.8	-1.3
Latvia	-0.3	-0.5	-0.3	-0.4	-0.1
Lithuania	0.0	0.1	0.2	0.6	0.3
Luxembourg	1.7	1.6	1.6	-0.5	1.3
Hungary	1.3	1.1	1.1	0.4	0.2
Malta	0.4	0.5	0.6	0.6	0.3
Netherlands	23.3	13.1	19.3	33.7	26.3
Austria	6.6	-0.7	1.0	2.7	7.3
Poland	-0.7	-1.9	-5.2	-0.8	1.0
Portugal	0.2	0.1	3.1	0.4	-0.6
Romania	-6.2	-7.4	-8.1	-8.3	-5.3
Slovenia	0.4	0.9	0.9	0.2	0.5
Slovakia	-1.6	-1.1	-1.1	-1.2	-0.4
Finland	-1.3	1.2	2.5	1.9	0.2
Sweden	11.7	10.5	9.0	9.3	8.8
Iceland	-0.5	-0.7	0.2	-0.3	-0.2
Norway	23.3	15.8	15.1	12.7	23.3
Switzerland	28.2	12.4	15.2	3.2	17.0
Bosnia and Herzegovina	-0.5	-0.2	0.0	-0.2	-0.4
Montenegro	-0.5	-0.5	0.0	-0.7	-0.6
Moldova	-1.0	-0.9	-0.7	-0.9	-0.8
North Macedonia	-0.3	-0.2	0.1	-0.3	-0.3
Albania	-0.3	-0.3	0.7	-0.3	-0.2
Serbia	-0.7	-1.4	-0.8	-1.5	-0.1
Türkiye	-13.5	-10.4	5.9	-9.6	:
Kosovo*	-0.3	-0.5	0.2	-0.4	-0.2
⁽¹⁾ data for France will be released on 8 July 2026. * Kosovo, under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244/99. : data not available Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_c6_q )

Services accounts balances – national data (intra-EU + extra-EU) – neither calendar nor seasonally adjusted (bn euro) –
	2025				2026
Countries	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Q1
Belgium	-1.4	-4.9	-4.4	-2.5	-2.2
Bulgaria	1.8	2.2	2.6	1.6	1.5
Czechia	1.4	1.0	1.3	0.4	1.4
Denmark	-0.4	0.8	1.2	0.2	-0.4
Germany	-13.7	-19.6	-25.3	-14.9	-12.0
Estonia	0.7	0.9	0.8	0.9	0.8
Ireland	-0.4	12.4	6.1	8.1	9.9
Greece	0.9	6.5	12.1	3.3	1.3
Spain	23.1	30.2	34.8	25.6	24.9
France ⁽¹⁾	9.8	20.5	11.4	10.3	:
Croatia	0.8	3.4	8.9	1.7	0.8
Italy	-5.0	1.5	2.2	-6.6	-4.8
Cyprus	1.5	2.3	2.9	2.5	1.2
Latvia	0.4	0.5	0.6	0.5	0.5
Lithuania	2.1	2.5	2.7	2.7	2.2
Luxembourg	7.3	7.4	7.7	6.8	7.4
Hungary	2.1	2.9	3.8	2.8	2.2
Malta	1.7	2.1	2.2	1.9	1.6
Netherlands	8.4	13.2	8.6	13.3	9.2
Austria	5.4	-0.9	0.1	2.1	5.8
Poland	9.5	10.8	9.9	9.2	9.4
Portugal	6.6	8.2	11.3	7.0	6.4
Romania	3.6	3.0	2.8	3.1	3.7
Slovenia	0.7	1.0	1.2	1.0	0.8
Slovakia	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.0	0.2
Finland	-1.4	-0.9	-1.4	-0.6	-1.6
Sweden	-2.4	-3.4	-3.5	-2.5	-2.9
Iceland	0.1	0.4	1.0	0.3	0.2
Norway	-1.7	-2.4	-2.2	-2.4	-2.3
Switzerland	-4.8	-2.2	-2.7	-7.2	-3.2
Bosnia and Herzegovina	0.4	0.5	0.7	0.6	0.4
Montenegro	0.1	0.4	1.0	0.2	0.1
Moldova	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.3	0.3
North Macedonia	0.2	0.2	0.3	0.3	0.2
Albania	0.7	0.9	1.9	1.0	0.8
Serbia	0.7	0.5	0.3	0.9	0.7
Türkiye	7.6	13.7	21.5	12.7	:
Kosovo*	0.4	0.4	1.1	0.5	0.5
⁽¹⁾ data for France will be released on 8 July 2026. * Kosovo, under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244/99. : data not available Source: Eurostat (dataset: bop_c6_q )

Notes for users

Revisions and timetable

The EU balance of payments estimates for the reference quarter are based on figures provided by the Member States to Eurostat 82 days (euro area Member States) or 85 days (non-euro area Member States) after the end of the reference quarter and should be considered as provisional. Figures may be subject to revision when data for later quarters are transmitted by the Member States.

A more limited set of monthly data is available in the Eurostat on-line database approximately 51 days after the end of the reference month. The publication timetable of balance of payments statistics for 2026 is available here.

Methods and definitions

The current account covers all transactions occurring between resident and non-resident entities, and refers to international trade in goods and services, as well as primary and secondary income. The capital account comprises capital transfers and the acquisition and disposal of non-produced, non-financial assets. The financial account records transactions that involve financial assets and liabilities, and take place between residents and non-residents and is further subdivided into direct investment, portfolio investment, other investment, financial derivatives and employee stock options and reserve assets. Further details of the statistical concepts and definitions used can be found on the Eurostat website here.

In line with the agreed allocation of responsibility, the European Central Bank (ECB) is in charge of compiling and disseminating monthly and quarterly balance of payments and quarterly international investment position statistics for the euro area, while the European Commission (Eurostat) is responsible for monthly, quarterly and annual aggregates of the EU. The aggregates for the euro area and the EU are compiled consistently on the basis of Member States' transactions with residents of countries outside the euro area and the European Union respectively.

Geographical information

Up to 31 December 2025, the euro area included Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and Finland (EA20). From 1 January 2026, the euro area also includes Bulgaria (EA21).

The aggregate data series for the euro area in this Euro indicator release refer to the official composition of the euro area as from 1 January 2026.

The European Union (EU27) includes Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden.

Offshore Financial Centres (OFC) is an aggregate that includes 40 countries. As example, the aggregate contains financial centres such as Liechtenstein, Guernsey, Jersey, the Isle of Man, Andorra, Gibraltar, Panama, Bermuda, the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, Bahrain, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines.