At the end of the third quarter of 2020 the ratio of public debt to GDP in the euro area reached 97.3%, compared to 95.0% at the end of the second quarter of 2020, and in the EU, the ratio increased from 87.7% to 89.8%, according to data published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union .
Compared to the third quarter of 2019, the ratio of public debt to GDP increased both in the euro area (from 85.8% to 97.3%) and in the EU (from 79.2% to 89.8%). ): the increases are due to two factors – public debt increases significantly and GDP decreases. At the end of the third quarter of 2020, debt securities accounted for 82.3% of the euro area and 82.1% of EU general government debt. Loans accounted for 14.5% and 14.8% respectively and currency and deposits accounted for 3.3% of the euro area and 3.1% of the EU's public debt.
In terms of intergovernmental lending (IGL), its share of GDP at the end of the third quarter of 2020 was 2.0% in the euro area and 1.7% in the EU.
The highest rates of government debt to GDP at the end of the third quarter of 2020 were recorded in Greece (199.9%), Italy (154.2%), Portugal (130.8%), Cyprus (119.5%) ), France (116.5%), Spain (114.1%) and Belgium (113.2%), and the lowest in Estonia (18.5%), Bulgaria (25.3%) and Luxembourg (26 , 1%).
Compared to the second quarter of 2020, twenty Member States recorded an increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of the third quarter of 2020 and a decrease of five, while the ratio remained stable in Estonia and the Netherlands.
The largest increases in the ratio were observed in Greece (+8.5 percentage points), Cyprus (+6.2), Italy (+4.9), Portugal (+4.8), Lithuania (+4, 6) and Bulgaria (+ 4.0). Reductions were recorded in Austria (-3.4), Finland (-1.7), the Czech Republic (-1.5), Belgium (-0.9) and Ireland (-0.7).
Compared to the third quarter of 2019, all Member States recorded an increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of the third quarter of 2020. The largest increases in the index occurred in Cyprus (+22.9), Italy (+17, 4), Greece (+17.3), Spain (+16.6) and France (+16.5).
At the same time, in the third quarter of 2020, the seasonally adjusted general government deficit to GDP ratio stood at 5.8% in the euro area and 5.6% in the EU.
In the third quarter of 2020, total government revenue in the euro area amounted to 46.2% of GDP, compared to 47.7% of GDP in the second quarter of 2020. This decrease as a percentage of GDP is due to the stronger GDP growth relative to the increase in total revenue, as seasonally adjusted total revenue in the euro area increased by around € 99 billion compared to the second quarter of 2020.
Total government expenditure in the euro area amounted to 52.1% of GDP, a significant decrease of the index compared to 59.6% in the previous quarter.
Seasonally adjusted total government spending fell by around € 41 billion compared to the second quarter of 2020, mainly due to the lower impact of policy measures to mitigate the economic and social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the EU, total government revenue was 46.0% of GDP in the third quarter of 2020, a decrease compared to 47.4% of GDP in the second quarter of 2020. Total EU public spending was 51.6% of GDP, decrease compared to 59.0% of GDP in the previous quarter.
Philenews / ΚΥΠΕ
