111/2012 - 23 July 2012
First quarter 2012 compared with fourth quarter 2011
Euro area government debt up to 88.2% of GDP EU27 up to 83.4% At the end of the first quarter of 2012, the government debt1 to GDP ratio2 in the euro area3 (EA17) stood at 88.2%, compared with 87.3% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2011. In the EU273 the ratio increased from 82.5% to 83.4%. Compared with the first quarter of 2011, the government debt to GDP ratio rose in both the euro area (from 86.2% to 88.2%) and the EU27 (from 80.4% to 83.4%). At the end of the first quarter of 2012, securities other than shares accounted for 78.3% of euro area and 79.3% of EU27 general government debt. Loans made up 17.8% of euro area and 15.6% of EU27 government debt. Currency and deposits represented 2.8% of euro area and 3.8% of EU27 government debt. Due to the involvement of EU governments in financial assistance to certain Member States, and in order to obtain a more complete picture of the evolution of government debt, quarterly data on intergovernmental lending (IGL)4 is also published. The share of IGL in GDP at the end of the first quarter of 2012 is similar for both the euro area and the EU27, amounting to 1.2% and 0.9% of GDP respectively.
These data are released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. EA17 Government debt Of which: Currency and deposits Securities other than shares Loans Memo: Intergovernmental lending in the context of the financial crisis
EU27 5 Government debt Of which: Currency and deposits Securities other than shares Loans Memo: Intergovernmental lending in the context of the financial crisis
2011Q1
2011Q4
2012Q1
(million euro) (% of GDP) (million euro) (% of total debt) (million euro) (% of total debt) (million euro) (% of total debt) (million euro) (% of GDP)
7 973 440 86.2 223 225 2.8 6 352 171 79.2 1 398 049 17.5 42 777 0.5
8 217 338 87.3 225 545 2.7 6 539 495 78.9 1 452 299 17.7 69 408 0.7
8 328 564 88.2 234 677 2.8 6 607 728 78.3 1 486 158 17.8 111 026 1.2
(million euro) (% of GDP) (million euro) (% of total debt) (million euro) (% of total debt) (million euro) (% of total debt) (million euro) (% of GDP)
9 971 729 80.4 369 614 3.7 7 985 347 79.7 1 556 916 15.6 42 777 0.3
10 423 705 82.5 394 133 3.8 8 358 697 79.7 1 620 249 15.5 69 878 0.6
10 592 499 83.4 407 188 3.8 8 483 482 79.3 1 650 192 15.6 111 993 0.9