China last year had the biggest deficit in its financial and capital account since records began in 1982 as the domestic and global economies slowed, spurring outflows of funds.
The $117.3 billion annual gap was the first since 1998 when investors deserted China during the Asian financial crisis and reversed a $221.1 billion surplus in 2011, according to data released on the State Administration of Foreign Exchange website yesterday. The excess in the current account, the broadest measure of trade, rose to $213.8 billion in 2012 from $201.7 billion the previous year.
