Updated and Extended "External Wealth of Nations" Dataset, 1970-2011


This database contains data on foreign assets and foreign liabilities for a large sample of countries for the period 1970-2011.  It also reports, where available, the split between "portfolio investment: debt securities" and "other investment" for both the category "external debt assets" and the category "external debt liabilities".

In using these data,  the appropriate reference is to  "updated and extended version of dataset constructed by Lane and Milesi-Ferretti (2007)"    and the appropriate citation is to:


Philip R. Lane and Gian Maria Milesi-Ferretti (2007),  "The external wealth of nations mark II: Revised and extended estimates of foreign assets and liabilities, 1970–2004", Journal of International Economics 73, November, 223-250.


The dataset (which includes an explanatory readme sheet) is available here.


News:  This paper has been selected for the 2010 Bhagwati Award by the Editorial Board of the Journal of International Economics.  The Bhagwati Award is given every two years for the best article published in the Journal of International Economics during the previous two years (with a one year lag for publication).  Official announcement is here.