Euro Area Government Debt Reaches 88.8% of GDP in Q2 2026

Year-over-year comparisons show that the euro area debt to GDP ratio increased from 87.3% in the second quarter of 2025, while the EU’s ratio grew from 81.4%. At the end of Q2 2026, the composition of government debt in the euro area was 84.5% in debt securities, 13.1% in loans, and 2.4% in currency and deposits. In the EU, these figures were 83.9%, 13.8%, and 2.4%, respectively.

Intergovernmental lending (IGL) as a percentage of GDP also saw data publication, standing at 1.3% in the euro area and 1.1% in the EU at the end of Q2 2026, as reported by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

In terms of individual Member States, Greece retained the highest debt-to-GDP ratio at 140.8%, followed closely by Italy at 139.9%, and France at 119.1%. Conversely, Estonia had the lowest ratio at 26.1%, with Denmark at 27.1% and Luxembourg at 28.2%.

From Q1 to Q2 2026, fifteen Member States recorded increases in their ratios, while ten noted decreases, resulting in stable figures for the Netherlands and Spain. Poland experienced the largest increase, jumping by 3.0 percentage points, followed by Portugal (+2.1 pp) and Latvia (+1.9 pp). The most significant decreases were observed in Cyprus (-3.0 pp), Greece (-2.7 pp), and Hungary (-2.0 pp).

Comparing to the second quarter of 2025, eighteen Member States reported a rise in their debt ratios, with Poland leading with a 6.7 percentage point increase, while Greece saw the largest decrease at -11.2 pp.

Quarterly government debt figures, which are provisional, are gathered in accordance with the European System of Accounts (ESA 2010) and utilize the Maastricht debt definition for the Excessive Deficit Procedure. The debt calculation is based on consolidated gross debt liabilities at the end of the quarter.