Reuters: Financial Services and Real Estate: Colombia posts 2011 c/a deficit of 3 pct of GDP

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Colombia posts 2011 c/a deficit of 3 pct of GDP Mar 30th 2012, 01:00 BOGOTA, March 29 | Thu Mar 29, 2012 9:00pm EDT BOGOTA, March 29 (Reuters) - Colombia's current account deficit in 2011 remained steady from the year earlier at 3 percent of GDP, the central bank said on Thursday. The current account deficit reached $9.98 billion, compared with $8.76 billion in 2010, both equivalent to 3 percent of GDP. Colombia's economy grew 5.9 percent in 2011 - one of the fastest rates in Latin America - though growth in the fourth quarter slowed to 1.3 percent as almost a year of interest rates hikes began taking effect. Improved security thanks to a U.S.-backed offensive against Marxist rebels has fueled foreign investment and spurred consumers to buy houses, cars and home appliances. Foreign direct investment rose 91.8 percent from 2010 to $13.23 billion, mostly concentrated in the oil and mining sectors, the bank said. The current account balance is the widest measure of a country's foreign transactions, encompassing trade, interest payments and services, and as such a gauge of reliance on foreign capital. The capital and financial account surplus grew $1.55 billion from the previous year to reach $13.32 billion as a result of portfolio and foreign direct investment and borrowing from abroad, the bank said. (Reporting by Luis Jaime Acosta; Writing by Brian Ellsworth; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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