Bulgaria with Third-Lowest Govt Debt to GDP Ratio in EU in Q1, 2015

In the first quarter of 2015, Bulgaria had the third-lowest government debt to GDP ratio in the EU, at 29.6%, preceded by Estonia with 10.5% and Luxembourg with 21.6%, according to Eurostat data.

The highest ratios of government debt to GDP at the end of the first quarter of 2015 were recorded in Greece (168.8%), Italy (135.1%) and Portugal (129.6%), according to the statistical office of the European Union.

Compared with the fourth quarter of 2014, fifteen Member States registered an increase in their debt to GDP ratio at the end of the first quarter of 2015 and twelve a decrease. The highest increases in the ratio were recorded in Belgium (+4.5 pp), Italy (+3.0 pp) and Croatia (+2.6 pp). The largest decreases were recorded in Greece (-8.3 pp), Latvia (-5.1 pp) and Lithuania (-2.7 pp).

Compared with the first quarter of 2014, fourteen Member States registered an increase in their debt to GDP ratio at the end of the first quarter of 2015, twelve a decrease and in Estonia there was no change. The highest increases in the ratio were recorded in Bulgaria (+10.0 pp), Croatia (+6.2 pp) and Slovenia (+4.8 pp), while the largest decreases were recorded in Greece (-5.5 pp) and Hungary (-4.7 pp).

At the end of the first quarter of 2015, the government debt to GDP ratio in the euro area (EA19) stood at 92.9%, compared with 92.0% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2014. In the EU28, the ratio increased from 86.9% to 88.2%. Compared with the first quarter of 2014, the government debt to GDP ratio rose in both the euro area (from 91.9% to 92.9%) and the EU28 (from 86.2% to 88.2%).

At the end of the first quarter of 2015, debt securities accounted for 79.1% of euro area and for 80.8% of EU28 general government debt. Loans made up 18.0% and 15.2% respectively and currency and deposits represented 2.9% of euro area and 3.9% of EU28 government debt. Due to the involvement of EU governments in financial assistance to certain Member States, quarterly data on intergovernmental lending (IGL) is also published. The share of IGL in GDP at the end of the first quarter of 2015 amounted to 2.3% in the euro area and to 1.7% in the EU28.

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