What it helps answer
Reading the signal
Combines trade, primary income and transfers to show whether an economy is a net lender to or borrower from the rest of the world during the year.
Indicator guide · BN.CAB.XOKA.GD.ZS
Current account balance
by country
Net current transactions with the rest of the world relative to GDP. The table keeps each country's reported year visible so stale and current observations are not treated as equivalent.
Before comparing
Important limits
A surplus is not always strength and a deficit is not always distress. Investment cycles, demographics, commodity prices and accounting centres affect interpretation.
Measurement
% of GDP
World Bank indicator BN.CAB.XOKA.GD.ZS. Values can be revised as national statistical agencies and international datasets update.
Source definition
Current account balance (% of GDP)
Balance of current transactions (transactions in goods and services, earned income and transfer income) between residents and non-residents. The term current account balance is used in the external accounts and is expressed from the perspective of resident units. The term current external balance is used in the national accounts and is expressed from the perspective of the non-resident units, and therefore with the opposite sign. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.
Original source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF); World Development Indicators Database, World Bank (WB); National Accounts data files, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
60-market reference table
Latest reported values
Sorted by value, not by a common year. Check the year column before drawing a direct comparison.
| Position | Country | Region | Value | Year | Explore |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kuwait | Middle East | 22.70% | 2025 | Compare |
| 2 | Ireland | Europe | 17.40% | 2024 | Compare |
| 3 | Singapore | Southeast Asia | 16.71% | 2025 | Compare |
| 4 | Qatar | Middle East | 14.81% | 2025 | Compare |
| 5 | United Arab Emirates | Middle East | 14.48% | 2024 | Compare |
| 6 | Norway | Europe | 13.97% | 2025 | Compare |
| 7 | Denmark | Europe | 12.20% | 2024 | Compare |
| 8 | Netherlands | Europe | 9.14% | 2024 | Compare |
| 9 | Ghana | Sub-Saharan Africa | 8.22% | 2025 | Compare |
| 10 | Switzerland | Europe | 6.98% | 2025 | Compare |
| 11 | South Korea | East Asia | 6.57% | 2025 | Compare |
| 12 | Vietnam | Southeast Asia | 6.33% | 2024 | Compare |
| 13 | Sweden | Europe | 6.06% | 2025 | Compare |
| 14 | Ecuador | Latin America | 5.91% | 2025 | Compare |
| 15 | Japan | East Asia | 4.86% | 2025 | Compare |
| 16 | Nigeria | Sub-Saharan Africa | 4.83% | 2025 | Compare |
| 17 | Germany | Europe | 4.51% | 2025 | Compare |
| 18 | China | East Asia | 3.77% | 2025 | Compare |
| 19 | Peru | Latin America | 3.58% | 2025 | Compare |
| 20 | Spain | Europe | 2.94% | 2025 | Compare |
| 21 | Thailand | Southeast Asia | 2.76% | 2025 | Compare |
| 22 | Portugal | Europe | 2.08% | 2024 | Compare |
| 23 | Austria | Europe | 1.79% | 2025 | Compare |
| 24 | Malaysia | Southeast Asia | 1.69% | 2024 | Compare |
| 25 | Hungary | Europe | 1.65% | 2025 | Compare |
| 26 | Israel | Middle East | 1.40% | 2025 | Compare |
| 27 | Finland | Europe | 1.34% | 2025 | Compare |
| 28 | Italy | Europe | 1.15% | 2025 | Compare |
| 29 | Czechia | Europe | 0.62% | 2025 | Compare |
| 30 | Bangladesh | South Asia | -0.05% | 2025 | Compare |
| 31 | Indonesia | Southeast Asia | -0.11% | 2025 | Compare |
| 32 | Pakistan | South Asia | -0.11% | 2025 | Compare |
| 33 | France | Europe | -0.27% | 2025 | Compare |
| 34 | India | South Asia | -0.42% | 2025 | Compare |
| 35 | South Africa | Sub-Saharan Africa | -0.42% | 2025 | Compare |
| 36 | Uruguay | Latin America | -0.44% | 2025 | Compare |
| 37 | Mexico | Latin America | -0.45% | 2025 | Compare |
| 38 | Costa Rica | Latin America | -0.67% | 2025 | Compare |
| 39 | Turkiye | Europe & Central Asia | -0.77% | 2024 | Compare |
| 40 | Poland | Europe | -0.87% | 2025 | Compare |
| 41 | Canada | North America | -0.95% | 2025 | Compare |
| 42 | Algeria | Middle East & North Africa | -1.02% | 2024 | Compare |
| 43 | Argentina | Latin America | -1.11% | 2025 | Compare |
| 44 | Chile | Latin America | -1.22% | 2025 | Compare |
| 45 | Kenya | Sub-Saharan Africa | -1.29% | 2024 | Compare |
| 46 | Belgium | Europe | -1.93% | 2025 | Compare |
| 47 | Colombia | Latin America | -2.38% | 2025 | Compare |
| 48 | United Kingdom | Europe | -2.43% | 2025 | Compare |
| 49 | Morocco | Middle East & North Africa | -2.50% | 2025 | Compare |
| 50 | Ethiopia | Sub-Saharan Africa | -2.53% | 2024 | Compare |
| 51 | Saudi Arabia | Middle East | -2.56% | 2025 | Compare |
| 52 | Australia | Oceania | -2.68% | 2025 | Compare |
| 53 | Brazil | Latin America | -2.93% | 2025 | Compare |
| 54 | Philippines | Southeast Asia | -3.34% | 2025 | Compare |
| 55 | New Zealand | Oceania | -3.62% | 2025 | Compare |
| 56 | United States | North America | -3.63% | 2025 | Compare |
| 57 | Egypt | Middle East & North Africa | -3.82% | 2025 | Compare |
| 58 | Greece | Europe | -7.11% | 2024 | Compare |
| 59 | Romania | Europe | -7.90% | 2025 | Compare |
| 60 | Ukraine | Europe | -7.96% | 2024 | Compare |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators. Retrieved 2026-08-26. Open the source indicator · Download 15-year CSV.
Build a direct comparison
Choose two markets to compare their full 15-year series. Missing years remain visible rather than being converted to zero.
Compare this indicator →