At the end of Q2 2024, Cyprus' general government debt-to-GDP ratio stood at 70.5%, compared to 88.1% in the Eurozone and 81.5% in the European Union, according to data published by Eurostat, the EU’s statistical office.

Cyprus recorded the largest reduction in its government debt-to-GDP ratio in Q2 2024, decreasing by 2.1 percentage points (pp) compared to Q1 2024 and by 10.0 pp compared to Q2 2023.

In the Eurozone, the general government debt-to-GDP ratio increased slightly to 88.1% at the end of Q2 2024, up from 87.8% at the end of Q1. Similarly, in the EU, the ratio rose from 81.3% to 81.5% during the same period.

Compared to Q2 2023, the public debt ratio decreased in both the Eurozone (from 88.8% to 88.1%) and the EU (from 81.9% to 81.5%).

At the end of Q2 2024, general government debt was primarily composed of securities, accounting for 84.0% in the Eurozone and 83.6% in the EU. Loans made up 13.4% in the Eurozone and 13.9% in the EU, while currency and deposits constituted 2.5% in both regions.

Due to the involvement of EU member states' governments in providing loans to certain countries, intergovernmental lending data is also published quarterly. At the end of Q2 2024, intergovernmental lending represented 1.5% of GDP in the Eurozone and 1.3% in the EU.

Among EU member states, Greece had the highest debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of Q2 2024, reaching 163.6%, followed by Italy (137.0%), France (112.2%), Belgium (108.0%), Spain (105.3%), and Portugal (100.6%). The lowest ratios were recorded in Bulgaria (22.1%), Estonia (23.8%), and Luxembourg (26.8%).

Compared to Q1 2024, nine member states saw an increase in their debt-to-GDP ratios by the end of Q2 2024, while 17 reported a decrease, and the ratio remained unchanged in Denmark.

The largest increases were observed in Finland (+2.0 pp), Austria and Italy (both +1.8 pp), France (+1.6 pp), Portugal (+1.2 pp), Poland (+0.9 pp), and Sweden (+0.6 pp).

The largest decreases occurred in Cyprus (-2.1 pp), Croatia (-2.0 pp), Greece (-1.8 pp), Lithuania (-1.7 pp), Spain (-0.9 pp), the Czech Republic (-0.8 pp), the Netherlands and Germany (both -0.7 pp), and Romania (-0.6 pp).

Compared to Q2 2023, 13 member states experienced an increase in their debt-to-GDP ratios by the end of Q2 2024, while 13 recorded a decrease, and the ratio remained stable in the Czech Republic.

The largest increases were seen in Finland (+5.2 pp), Estonia (+4.7 pp), Latvia and Poland (both +4.1 pp), Austria (+3.1 pp), Belgium (+2.3 pp), Romania (+2.2 pp), and Slovakia (+1.0 pp).

On the other hand, the largest decreases were recorded in Cyprus (-10.0 pp), Greece (-8.9 pp), Portugal (-8.1 pp), Croatia (-5.7 pp), Spain (-3.5 pp), the Netherlands (-2.2 pp), Germany (-1.7 pp), and Luxembourg (-1.3 pp).