Opinion of the European Central Bank of 27 November 2009 on foreign trade reporting requirements (CON/2009/97)
Date: 2009-11-27
Institutions: European Central Bank
Subjects: Germany, balance sheet, direct investment, disclosure of information, foreign trade, national law, statistics

EN 

OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 

of 27 November 2009  

on foreign trade reporting requirements 

(CON/2009/97) 

Introduction and legal basis 

On 10 November 2009, the European Central Bank (ECB) received a request from the German Ministry 

for Economic Affairs and Technology for an opinion on the 89th Regulation amending the Regulation on 

foreign trade (hereinafter the ‘draft regulation’). 

The  ECB’s  competence  to  deliver  an  opinion  is  based  on  Article  105(4)  of  the  Treaty  establishing  the 

European  Community  and  the  fourth  indent  of  Article 2(1)  of  Council  Decision  98/415/EC  of  29 June 

1998 on the consultation of the European Central Bank by national authorities regarding draft legislative 
provisions1,  as  the  draft  regulation  relates  to  the  collection  and  distribution  of  balance  of  payments 

statistics. In accordance with the first sentence of Article 17.5 of the Rules of Procedure of the European 

Central Bank, the Governing Council has adopted this opinion. 

1.  

Purpose of the draft regulation 

1.1  The  draft  regulation  will  adapt  the  reporting  requirements  under  the  Regulation  on  foreign  trade 

(Außenwirtschaftsverordnung,  hereinafter  the  ‘AWV’)  to  international  standards  for  the  inclusion 

of  assets  and  liabilities  arising  from  derivatives  and  to  the  calculation  of  direct  investment.  In 

addition, it will repeal the reporting of the foreign assets and liabilities of natural persons. 

1.2  The Regulation also enables the Bundesbank to fulfil its obligation under Guideline ECB/2004/15 

of 16 July 2004 on the statistical reporting requirements of the European Central Bank in the field 

of  balance  of  payments  and  international  investment  position  statistics,  and  the  international 
reserves template2. The Deutsche Bundesbank is obliged under this Guideline, when providing the 

ECB  with  data  on  the  international  investment  position,  to  provide  information  on  assets  and 

liabilities  with  non-euro  area  residents  arising  from  financial  derivatives.  The  Deutsche 

Bundesbank is also obliged to inform the International Monetary Fund accordingly. Collecting and 

reporting this data will in future take place in accordance with the AWV. 

1.3 

In addition, it implements the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) 
Benchmark  Definition  of  Foreign  Direct  Investment  (4th  edition).  Germany  is  also  obliged  as  an 

1  
2  

OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42.  
OJ L 354, 30.11.2004, p. 34. 

 
 
 
 
                                                 
OECD member to collect data on direct investment, including all cross-border capital movements 

relating  to  direct  investment.  For  this,  it  is  necessary  to  record  separately  cross-border  assets  for 

sister companies. Therefore, in the reporting of surveys of stocks for direct investments, individual 

balance sheet positions are additionally broken down. 

1.4  Furthermore, the draft regulation will repeal certain reporting requirements concerning capital and 

payment movements and amend certain reporting templates. 

2. 

General observation  

The  ECB  generally  welcomes  this  draft  regulation  which  will  ensure  consistency  with  the  reporting 

requirements  under  Guideline  ECB/2004/15  that  follows  the  basic  principles  of  the  ECB  Statistics 
Quality  Framework3.  The  main  purpose  of  euro  area  balance  of  payments  and  international  investment 

position  statistics  is  to  support  the  ECB’s  monetary  policy  and  other  Eurosystem  tasks.  Moreover,  as 
stated  in  the  Eurosystem’s  mission  statement  and  the  public  commitment4,  accountability,  transparency 

and good governance are important values supporting the integrity of the statistical functions defined by 

Article  5  of  the  Statute  of  the  European  System  of  Central  Banks  and  the  European  Central  Bank 

(hereinafter the ‘Statute of the ESCB’). 

3. 

Frequency of reporting 

In  accordance  with  Article  14.3  of  the  Statute  of  the  ESCB,  NCBs  must  act  in  accordance  with  the 

guidelines  of  the  ECB.  The  draft  regulation  envisages  that  corporations  other  than  monetary  financial 

institutions will report on an annual basis assets and liabilities with non-euro area residents arising from 

financial  derivatives.  Nonetheless,  quarterly  positions  on  financial  derivatives  are  required  under 

Guideline  ECB/2004/15.  From  the  reports  of  transactions  in  financial  derivatives,  it  can  however  be 

derived  that  corporations  other  than  monetary  financial  institutions  are  not  significantly  engaged  in 

activities  in  financial  derivatives  with  non-euro  area  residents.  Moreover,  to  avoid  a  disproportionate 

increase  in  the  reporting  burden  of  German  corporations  other  than  monetary  financial  institutions,  an 

annual report is appropriate. Developments in the activities of corporations other than monetary financial 

institutions in financial derivatives with non-euro area residents should be regularly monitored; if those 

activities acquire statistical significance, the corresponding positions should be reported quarterly. 

This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website. 

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 27 November 2009.  

[signed] 

The President of the ECB 

Jean-Claude TRICHET 

3  
4  

Available on the ECB’s website at www.ecb.europa.eu. 
Available on the ECB’s website at www.ecb.europa.eu. 

2