The research looked at what causes differences in how much money countries owe or are owed by other countries. They studied a big group of countries from 1980 to 2011. For developed countries, having more foreign assets, open trade, and stable exchange rates means they owe more. But for emerging countries, high commodity prices, economic growth, and open trade mean they owe more. The study found that different factors affect current account balances for different types of countries. The results also identified new important factors that influence current account balances.