Greece is European public debt reduction champion

General government debt in the euro area stood at 91.% of GDP at the end of the fourth quarter of 2022, according to data released by Eurostat, down from 93% at the end of the third quarter.

In the EU, the index also fell from 85.1% to 84.0%. For both the euro area and the EU, the decline in the government debt-to-GDP ratio is due to an increase in GDP that offsets the increase in government debt in absolute terms.

Compared to the fourth quarter of 2021, the government debt-to-GDP ratio also fell in both the euro area (from 95.5% to 91.6%) and the EU (from 88.0% to 84.0 %).

At the end of the fourth quarter of 2022, debt securities represented 82.5% of euro area debt and 81.9% of EU general government debt. Loans represented 14.5% and 15.1 % respectively and foreign exchange and deposits accounted for 3.0% of euro area debt and 2.9% of EU public debt.

The protagonists

The highest indices at the end of the fourth quarter of 2022 are recorded in Greece (171.3%), Italy (144.4%), Portugal (113.9%), Spain (113.2%), France (111.6% ) and Belgium (105.1%) and the lowest in Estonia (18.4%), Bulgaria (22.9%) ) and Luxembourg (24.6%).

Compared to the third quarter of 2022, seven Member States recorded an increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of the fourth quarter of 2022 and nineteen a decrease, while the ratio remained stable in Luxembourg.

The largest increases in the ratio were seen in Estonia (+2.5 percentage points – p.p.), the Netherlands (+2.0 p.p.), Lithuania and Finland (both +1.1 p.p.). m.), while the biggest decreases were recorded in Portugal (-5.9 p.m.). , Cyprus (-4.8 p.m.), Greece (-4.5 p.m.), Ireland (-4.4 p.m.) and Austria (-3.0 p.m.)

Compared to the fourth quarter of 2021, four Member States recorded an increase in their debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of the fourth quarter of 2022 and twenty-three Member States a decrease. Increases in the ratio were recorded in the Czech Republic (+2.1 pp), Estonia (+0.8 pp), Finland (+0.4 pp) and Luxembourg (+0, 1 am), while the biggest decreases were observed in Greece (-23.3 p.m.), Cyprus (-14.7 p.m.), Portugal (-11.5 p.m.), Ireland (-10.7 p.m.) , Croatia (-10.0 p.m.), Denmark (-6.6 p.m.), Italy (-5.5 p.m.), Lithuania (-5.3 p.m.) and Spain (-5.0pp).