The U.S. net international investment position (IIP), the difference between U.S. residents’ foreign financial assets and liabilities, was –$16.07 trillion at the end of the third quarter of 2021, according to statistics released today by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). Assets totaled $34.45 trillion, and liabilities were $50.53 trillion. At the end of the second quarter, the net investment position was –$15.91 trillion.

The –$165.1 billion change in the net investment position from the second quarter to the third quarter came from net financial transactions of –$114.0 billion and net other changes in position, such as price and exchange-rate changes, of –$51.1 billion that mostly reflected the depreciation of major foreign currencies against the U.S. dollar that lowered the value of U.S. assets in dollar terms.

U.S. assets increased by $181.2 billion to a total of $34.45 trillion at the end of the third quarter, reflecting increases in portfolio investment and reserve assets. Portfolio investment assets increased by $194.3 billion to $16.16 trillion, driven by net U.S. purchases of foreign securities. Reserve assets increased by $105.0 billion to $695.1 billion, reflecting the allocation of $112.8 billion in new special drawing rights (SDRs) in August 2021 to the United States as its share of the $650 billion SDR allocation approved by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The SDR is an international reserve asset created by the IMF to supplement its member countries’ official reserves and can be exchanged between members for currencies such as the U.S. dollar, the euro, or the yen. The allocation in the third quarter was the largest in the history of the IMF.

U.S. liabilities increased by $346.3 billion to a total of $50.53 trillion at the end of the third quarter, mostly reflecting increases in other investment liabilities. Other investment liabilities increased by $294.8 billion to $7.77 trillion, reflecting increases in deposit liabilities and in SDR allocation liabilities that represent the U.S. long-term obligation to other IMF member countries holding SDRs. In an SDR allocation, the increase in U.S. liabilities offsets the increase in U.S. assets, so the allocation has no impact on the net international investment position.

Releases of New Statistics

With this release of the U.S. IIP Accounts, BEA is introducing two new IIP tables—tables 2.2 and 4.1. IIP table 2.2 features annual statistics on direct investment positions in U.S. resident special purpose entities (SPEs), which are U.S. legal entities with little or no employment or physical presence. The increased prevalence of SPEs heightens the need for separate statistics on their activities for analysis and for improved interpretability of macroeconomic statistics. IIP table 4.1 features quarter-end position statistics on U.S. debt positions by currency, sector, and maturity for U.S. assets and liabilities. These statistics will be valuable for assessing U.S. exposure to foreign currency risks and for helping to identify potential future financial crises. The new tables fulfill commitments to the IMF Task Force on Special Purpose Entities and the G–20 Data Gaps Initiative to release these statistics by yearend 2021. For more information, see “New Statistics on U.S. Resident Special Purpose Entities in the International Investment Position Accounts” and “New Statistics on U.S. Debt Positions in the International Investment Position Accounts.”

Accelerating Release of Annual IIP Statistics

BEA will accelerate the publication of the annual IIP table 1.3 usually released in June each year to March each year. Table 1.3 provides details for the annual change in the IIP, such as financial transactions, price changes, exchange-rate changes, and other changes in volume and valuation. For the upcoming IIP release on March 29, 2022, BEA will include table 1.3 for 2021, which will also be available in BEA’s Interactive Data Application. The table will subsequently be updated as part of the annual update in June each year.

华盛顿，12月30日 – 美国经济分析局（BEA）今天发布的统计数据显示，截至2021年第三季度末，美国净国际投资头寸(IIP)为- 16.07万亿美元，即美国居民的海外金融资产和负债之间的差额。资产总额为34.45万亿美元，负债为50.53万亿美元。在第二季度末，净投资头寸为- 15.91万亿美元。

统计数据显示，从第二季度到第三季度，净投资头寸的1651亿美元变化来自于净金融交易的1140亿美元，以及其他头寸的净变化，如价格和汇率的变化，-511亿美元，这主要反映了主要外币对美元的贬值，降低了以美元计算的美国资产价值。

2021年第三季度，国际货币基金组织（IMG）批准了一项新的特别提款权分配，以减轻新冠病毒大流行对发展中国家财政的影响，这推动了美国资产和负债的增加。新冠病毒病大流行的全面经济影响无法在国际知识产权统计中量化，因为这些影响通常包含在源数据中，无法单独确定。

美国资产在第三季度末增加了1812亿美元，达到34.45万亿美元，反映出证券投资和储备资产的增加。由于美国净购买外国证券，证券投资资产增加了1943亿美元，达到16.16万亿美元。储备资产增加了1050亿美元，至6951亿美元，反映出国际货币基金组织批准的6500亿美元特别提款权分配中，美国在2021年8月分配了1128亿美元的新特别提款权。特别提款权是国际货币基金组织创造的一种国际储备资产，用于补充其成员国的官方储备，并可在成员国之间兑换美元、欧元或日元等货币。第三季度的拨款规模是国际货币基金组织历史上最大的。

截至第三季度末，美国债务增加3,463亿美元，至50.53万亿美元，主要反映在其他投资债务的增加。其他投资债务增加了2948亿美元，至7.77万亿美元，反映出存款债务和特别提款权分配债务的增加，这是美国对其他持有特别提款权的国际货币基金组织 成员国的长期义务。在特别提款权分配中，美国负债的增加抵消了美国资产的增加，因此这种分配对净国际投资头寸没有影响。