At the end of the third quarter of 2022, the average government deficit ratio was 3.3% of GDP and the average government debt ratio was 93.0% of GDP in the euro area, compared with the previous quarter, according to data published by the Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat) on Monday 23 January.
At EU level, the average government deficit to GDP ratio was 3.2% and the average government debt ratio was 85.1% of GDP.
Eurostat notes “sizeable” increases in deficit compared to the second quarter of 2022 in the euro area and the EU. According to the statistical office, measures to mitigate the impact of higher energy prices began to have a greater impact on public finances in the third quarter.
Of the 23 countries for which data is available, Romania (-6.3%), Hungary (-6.1%) and Belgium (-5.1%) recorded the largest government deficits, while the largest budget surpluses were observed in Ireland (3.1%) and Portugal (1.3%).
Debt. For both the euro area and the EU, the decline in the average government debt-to-GDP ratio compared to the previous quarter is due to economic growth prevailing over the increase in government debt in absolute terms.
At the end of September 2022, the highest public debt ratios were recorded in Greece (178.2%), Italy (147.3%), Portugal (120.1%), Spain (115.6%), France (113.4%) and Belgium (106.3%). Public debt is lowest in Estonia (15.8%), Bulgaria (23.1%) and Luxembourg (24.6%). Germany (66.6%) is close to the Maastricht threshold. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)