What is a Capital Account?

A capital account is an account that gives a summary of the transactions executed by a country with other entities and countries, it reflects the capital expenditure and income of the country. A capital account is often used in macroeconomics or international economics. A capital account is an account that depicts transactions such as imports, exports, investments, loans and other economic transactions that flow in and out of a country. It is the second half of balance of payments, a current account being the other half. In accounting, a capital account is also called shareholders equity, it is the account that reflects the net worth or net change in the ownership of a company.

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How is a Capital Account Used? 

The balance of payments of a country comprises of two accounts; the current account and the capital account. Through a capital account, one can have a sneak peek into the transactions made between a country and others. The investment portfolios, import, export, and all foreign investment that can be directly linked to a country are reflected on this account. Hence, the economic health that a company services from import and exports is revealed in the capital account. This account also reflect how appealing a country is to foreign investors. The financial stability and future economic health if a country is expressly reflected by its capital account.

Corporate Capital Accounts

A capital account has a slightly different meaning in accounting as against how it is use in international accounting. The capital account of a business is a financial record of the retained earnings and capital contributed to the business by its owner. The capital account sums up the amount that the company has, it is the cumulative amount of the money held by the company at creation subtracted from dividends paid to shareholders. The capital account is also called shareholders equity in accounting.

Related Topics

• Trade Balance: Surplus and Deficit
• Mercantilism
• J Curve
• National Trade Data Bank
• Capital Account (Economics)
• Merchandise Trade Balance
• Current Account 
• Income Payments
• Unilateral Transfer
• Is it better to have a trade surplus or a trade deficit? 
• Export of Goods and Services and Percentage of GDP
• Heckscher-Ohlin Model 
• Linder Hypothesis
• The Balance of Trade as a Balance of Payments
• National Savings and Investment Identity
• Circular Flow of Money
• Financial Capital
• Supply and Demand Sides for Financial Capital? 
• Flow of Capital
• Domestic Saving and Investment Determine the Trade Balance
• National Savings Identity and Trade Deficits
• How the Business Cycle Affects Trade Balances
• Trade Balance or Trade Surplus
• Level of Trade
• Comparative Advantage
• Absolute Advantage
• Specialization and Gain from Trade
• Absolute Advantage in All Goods
• Production Possibilities Frontier and Comparative Advantage
• Comparative Advantage and Mutually Beneficial Trade
• Gain from Trade
• Opportunity Costs and International Trade
• Intra-Industry Trade
• Splitting Up the Value Chain
• How Economies of Scale Lead to Trading Advantages
• Protectionism
• Closed Economy
• Tariffs 
• Double Column Tariff
• Import Quotas
• Double Column Tariff
• Infant Industry Theory
• National Interest Argument
• Race to the Bottom
• Anti-Dumping Laws
• Dumping
• Trade War
• Race to the Bottom
• Non-Tariff Barriers
• Effects of Trade Barriers
• Who Is Benefited and Who is Harmed by Protectionism?
• Infant Industry Theory for Restricting Imports
• What is the Anti-Dumping Argument for Restricting Imports?

• Anti-Dumping Laws
• Dumping

• What is the Environmental Protection Argument for Restricting Imports?
• Race to the Bottom
• Unsafe Consumer Products Argument for Restricting Imports?
• National Interest Argument for Restricting Imports
• What is the WTO?
• What is the GATT?
• What are Free Trade Agreements?
• North American Free Trade Agreement
• Central European Free Trade Agreement
• General Agreement on Free Tariff and Trade (GATT)
• Common Market
• Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa
• Central American Common Market
• Caribbean Community and Common Market
• What are Economic Unions?
• WTO
• International Monetary Fund
• World Economic Forum
• Inter-American Development Bank
• Davos World Economic Forum 
• Chamber of Commerce
• Jackson Hole Economic Symposium