Georgia has $15b external debt

Georgia currently owes $15.1 billion in external debt and this amount is growing, says the country’s national bank show.

As of June 30, 2016, the total gross external debt of Georgia was $15.1 billion, said the National Bank of Georgia (NBG) today.

Georgia’s external debt increased this year, particularly in the second quarter (Q2) when the country’s gross external debt increased by $413.7 million USD, latest NBG figures showed.

Despite owing more, Georgia was attracting more Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs).

In Q2 of 2016, Georgia attracted $445 million in FDIs – a 20 percent increase year-on-year (y/y), showed preliminary data by the National Statistics Office of Georgia (Geostat). 

Leading on from this, Georgia’s international investment position (IIP) has improved and amounted to -$19.4 billion as of June 30, 2016. 

This figure has deepened by $604.9 million compared to the previous quarter,” said the bank today.

An IIP is a financial statement that explains the value and composition of a country’s external financial assets and liabilities. A positive IIP value indicates a nation is a creditor nation, while a negative value indicates it is a debtor nation, as is such in Georgia’s case.

Meanwhile other data from NBG on the country’s balance of payment indicated how much money was coming into and going out of the country. The NBG said Georgia’s current account deficit of balance of payment was 486.9 million USD in Q2 of 2016. A negative balance of goods was the major contributor to the current account deficit, explained NBG.