Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Statistics

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Canonical URL: Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Statistics

Session No.: OL 26.112
Location: Course conducted online
Date: May 1, 2026 - April 15, 2027 (50 weeks)
Delivery Method: Online Training
Primary Language: Spanish
Qualifications: Some knowledge of economics and statistics or equivalent experience is helpful.
Target Audience:
- Individuals interested in learning the fundamentals of compiling external accounts that cover balance of payments (BOP) and international investment position (IIP) statistics according to internationally accepted standards.
- Open to those who compile, or plan to compile, BOP and IIP statistics.
- Basic-level course laying the foundation for the intermediate BOP and IIP statistics course.

The course covers the fundamentals needed to compile the external accounts.
Introduces the conceptual statistical framework for BOP and IIP as presented in the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Statistics Manual, sixth edition (BPM6), which is harmonized with other macroeconomic statistical frameworks.
Topics and content areas:
- Current, capital, and financial account balances, and how they reflect an economy's interaction with the rest of the world.
- Basic concepts, definitions, and classifications relevant to external accounts.
- Principal accounting rules, including valuation and time of recording, relevant for compilation of the external accounts.
- Functional categories, including direct investment.
- Integration of the BOP with the IIP for compiling comprehensive, internationally comparable statistics.
Update note:
- The course is being updated to include the changes introduced by the Integrated Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual, Seventh Edition (BPM7).

Upon completion of the course, participants should be able to:

Explain the external accounts framework of the BOP and IIP and relevant indicators, such as the current, capital, and financial accounts balances, and net IIP.
Apply core concepts and definitions relevant to the external accounts, such as residence, economic territory, predominant center of economic interest, and accounting rules.
Classify cross-border transactions and positions according to international standards.
Record the main components of the current account, including goods, services, primary (earned) income, and secondary (transfer) income, as well as the capital account.
Identify transactions in financial assets and liabilities and their link to investment income.
Explain the direct investment framework and its role in the economy, including as a source of financing.
Recognize the need to integrate the BOP with the IIP to produce consistent and coherent data.