Transaction values

Foreign direct investment transactions form part of the balance of payments statistics. Information about the data sources can be found under “Balance of payments”.

Foreign direct investment stock statistics and statistics on foreign affiliates (FATS)

External sector reporting serves as the basis for compiling external sector statistics. Each year, all resident banks, enterprises, individuals and public authorities participating in external transactions are required to report detailed data on their cross-border equity investment (foreign direct investment) should the investment enterprises’ balance sheet total exceed €3 million (or its equivalent). The information required for outward FATS is likewise based on the annual reports on residents’ assets abroad.

These reporting requirements are anchored in Section 11(3) of the Foreign Trade and Payments Act (Außenwirtschaftsgesetz) together with Sections 64 and 65 of the Foreign Trade and Payments Regulation (Außenwirtschaftsverordnung). The data are used for statistical purposes only. Pursuant to Section 11(5) of the Foreign Trade and Payments Act (Außenwirtschaftsgesetz) in conjunction with Section 16 of the Act on Statistics for Federal Purposes (Gesetz über die Statistik für Bundeszwecke), all individual data are subject to statistical confidentiality.