BALANCE-OF-PAYMENTS CURRENT ACCOUNT SHOWS $1.55 BILLION DEFICIT

( Vidi vijest: 5199 ) ZAGREB, Oct 23 (Hina) - Croatia's balance-of-payments current account showed a 2.3 times higher deficit in the first six months in 1997 than in the same period last year, whereas a surplus generated by financial transactions increased by more than five times, the National Bank of Croatia (NBH) said on Thursday. The balance-of-payments current account recorded a US$ 1.55 billion deficit from January to July, whereas in the same period last year it showed a US$ 662.3 million deficit. In the first half of 1997 the financial transactions yielded a US$ 895.5 million surplus, while in the same period of 1996 the surplus amounted to US$ 172.4 million. (hina) jn mš 231508 MET oct 97