consumption goods, accounted for 23 percent of imports and intermediate goods for 15 percent.

**Table 4: Balance of payments,** **<u>percent of GDP, 2007-2012</u>**

||**2007**|**2008**|**2009**|**2010**|**2011**|**2012**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|**Current account balance (including official transfers)**|**-8.3%**|**-13.0%**|**-24.7%**|**-19.9%**|**-24.7%**|**-17.7%**|
|**Current account balance (excluding official transfers)**|**-10.5%**|**-15.2%**|**-25.4%**|**-25.4%**|**-28.0%**|**-20.9%**|
|**Goods and services**|**-12.6%**|**-16.9%**|**-26.9%**|**-26.9%**|**-28.5%**|**-20.4%**|
|**Goods**|**-5.9%**|**-8.2%**|**-15.0%**|**-14.2%**|**-15.1%**|**-9.2%**|
|Exports|15.6%|17.0%|18.7%|20.2%|20.1%|23.5%|
|Imports|-21.5%|-25.2%|-33.7%|-34.4%|-35.2%|-32.7%|
|**Services**|-6.7%|-8.8%|-11.9%|-12.7%|-13.4%|-11.2%|
|**Income**|**0.0%**|**-0.4%**|**-0.6%**|**-0.8%**|**-0.8%**|**-1.8%**|
|**Current transfers**|**4.4%**|**4.3%**|**2.8%**|**7.9%**|**4.6%**|**4.6%**|
|**Capital and Financial Account**|**12.1%**|**16.2%**|**21.4%**|**23.5%**|**23.7%**|**20.5%**|
|**Capital account**|**6.3%**|**4.8%**|**4.8%**|**3.4%**|**2.5%**|**4.9%**|
|Capital transfers|5.0%|4.8%|4.8%|3.4%|2.5%|5.8%|
|Acquisition/disposal of non-produced, nonfinancial<br>assets|1.4%|0.0%|0.0%|0.0%|0.0%|0.0%|
|**Financial Account**|**5.7%**|**11.5%**|**16.7%**|**20.1%**|**21.2%**|**15.6%**|
|Direct investment|2.8%|11.0%|13.8%|17.5%|16.7%|8.4%|
|Portfolio Investment|-0.1%|-0.2%|0.3%|0.3%|0.3%|0.1%|
|Other investment (excl. except. financing)|3.0%|0.7%|2.6%|2.2%|4.3%|7.1%|
|Errors and Omissions|-0.4%|-0.2%|-0.3%|0.0%|0.0%|0.0%|
|**Overall balance**|**3.4%**|**3.0%**|**-3.6%**|**3.6%**|**-0.9%**|**2.9%**|
|**Financing**|**-3.4%**|**-3.0%**|**3.6%**|**-3.6%**|**0.9%**|**-2.9%**|
|Change in net foreign assets (-increase)|-3.5%|-3.2%|3.4%|-3.8%|0.9%|-2.9%|
|Reschedulingobtained|0.2%|0.2%|0.1%|0.1%|0.1%|0.1%|

_Source_ : Government of Niger, IMF Niger data base, and World Bank WDI.

Niger suffers from a structural trade deficit, which, due to investment related large scale imports of capital and intermediate goods, increased from 12.6 percent of GDP in 2007 to 28.5 percent of GDP in 2011. With the completion of the refinery in 2011 and the switch from an importer to an exporter of oil, the trade deficit dropped to 20.4 percent of GDP in 2012. Developments in the trade account are mirrored in the current account deficit (excluding official transfers), which increased from 10.5 percent of GDP in 2007 to 28 percent of GDP in 2011 before dropping to 20.9 percent of GDP in 2012.

The current account is financed through foreign direct investment and donor assistance. As a result of large scale foreign investments in the uranium and oil sectors, foreign direct investment increased from 2.8 percent in 2007 to 17.5 percent in 2010 and 16.7 percent in 2011. With the completion of the oil refinery in 2011, foreign direct investment dropped to 8.4 percent in 2012. Donor funding in the form of grants and loans was affected by the political crisis during the period 2009 to 2011, which resulted in a temporary decline in donor support. This also led to fluctuations in the overall balance of payments which registered surpluses of about 3 percent of GDP in most years with the exception of 2009 and 2011 when the overall balance registered deficits.