site.btaBulgaria Posts Lowest Debt-to-GDP Ratio in Q1 EU-wide

The ratio of government debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in EU countries rose to 81.8% at the end of the first quarter of 2025, compared to 81% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2024. This is according to the latest data from the European statistical agency Eurostat, published on Monday on its website. In the euro area, the figure was 88%, compared to 87.4% in the last quarter of the previous year.

The debt-to-GDP ratio compared to the first quarter of 2024 increased both in the EU (from 81.2% to 81.8%) and in the euro area (from 87.8% to 88%).

At the end of the first quarter of 2025, total government debt consisted of 83.6% in debt securities in the EU and 84.2% in the euro area, 13.9% in loans in the EU and 13.3% in the euro area, and 2.5% in currency and deposits in the EU and 2.6% in the euro area.

At the end of the first quarter of 2025, the lowest government debt-to-GDP ratios among EU countries were recorded in Bulgaria (23.9%), Estonia (24.1%), Luxembourg (26.1%), and Denmark (29.9%).

The highest debt-to-GDP ratios for the first quarter of 2025 were registered in Greece (152.5%), Italy (137.9%), France (114.1%), Belgium (106.8%), and Spain (103.5%).

Compared to the fourth quarter of 2024, 16 member states registered an increase in the government debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of the first quarter of 2025. 10 countries recorded a decrease, and the ratio remained unchanged in the Czech Republic.

The largest decreases in the ratio were observed in Ireland (-3.7 percentage points), Latvia (-1.2 percentage points), and Greece (-1.1 percentage points). The largest increases were recorded in Austria and Slovakia (3.5 percentage points each), Slovenia (2.9 pp), Italy (2.5 pp), Lithuania (2.4 pp), Poland (2.2 pp), and Belgium (2.1 pp). In Bulgaria, a decline of 0.2 percentage points was reported.

 Compared to the first quarter of 2024, 13 member states registered an increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of the first quarter of 2025, 12 countries recorded a decrease, and the ratio remained unchanged in Slovenia and Estonia.

The most significant decreases in the ratio were seen in Greece (-9.3 pp), Cyprus (-8.2 pp), Ireland (-6.1 pp), Croatia (-3.6 pp), Denmark (-3.2 pp), Spain (-2.8 pp), and Portugal (-2.7 pp).

In contrast, the largest increases were registered in Poland (6.1 pp), Finland (5.1 pp), Austria and Romania (4.1 pp each), France (3.6 pp), Italy (2.9 pp), Slovakia (2.6 pp), and Sweden (2 pp).
In Bulgaria, a 1.5 percentage point increase was recorded for the same period.