Balance of payments – commentary

February 2026

The current account surplus amounted to CZK 17.4 billion in February. The balance of goods and services showed a surplus of CZK 38.1 billion. Direct investment dividends totalling CZK 1.2 billion were recorded on the debit side of the primary income balance. Income and capital transfers include a negative balance of transactions vis-à-vis EU institutions, totalling CZK 3.3 billion.

Current account
(CZK billions)
Balance of payments – monthly – chart 1 – Current account

Net capital outflows on the financial account (net lending) reached CZK 26.6 billion in February. Transaction growth in assets vis-à-vis non-residents amounted to CZK 73.8 billion amid a simultaneous rise in liabilities to non-residents of CZK 47.2 billion. Foreign direct investment recorded a net capital inflow of CZK 6.4 billion, driven by a balance of flows into equity capital (CZK 13.2 billion), while the balance of flows in debt instruments showed a capital outflow (CZK 6.8 billion). Portfolio investment recorded a net capital inflow of CZK 54.2 billion, with liabilities increasing by CZK 53.2 billion due to transactions, while the volume of assets declined by CZK 1.0 billion. The inflow in portfolio investment was driven mainly by increasing non-resident holdings of debt securities issued by domestic banks (CZK 33.0 billion) and general government (CZK 19.2 billion). Conversely, on the asset side, a decline was recorded in holdings of non-resident securities by domestic commercial banks (CZK 5.3 billion).

Direct and portfolio investment
(CZK billions)
Balance of payments – monthly – chart 2 – Direct and portfolio investment

Other investment recorded a net capital outflow of CZK 32.8 billion amid a transaction decline in liabilities to non-residents (CZK 19.4 billion) and a transaction increase in assets vis-à-vis non-residents (CZK 13.4 billion) within this functional category. On the liabilities side, the transaction decline was driven mainly by repayments of foreign long-term loans by general government (CZK 24.3 billion). The increase in assets within other investment was driven mainly by growth in deposits with non-residents held by domestic commercial banks (CZK 13.3 billion) and other sectors (CZK 11.4 billion). International reserves increased by CZK 52.6 billion in February owing to transactions.