Greece is among the trio of eurozone and EU member states with the largest reduction in the debt-to-GDP ratio in the second quarter of 2024, both in relation to the first quarter of the year and on an annual basis (i.e., in relation to the second quarter of 2023), according to data announced by Eurostat on Tuesday afternoon, with Greece remaining the country with the highest debt ratio among the 27 EU member states.

At the end of the second quarter of 2024, the ratio of general government gross debt to GDP in the 20 euro area countries was 88.1%, compared with 87.8% at the end of the first quarter of 2024.

At the European Union level, the ratio also increased from 81.3% to 81.5%.

At the end of Q2 2024, general government debt consisted of 84% in the euro area and 83.6% in EU debt securities, 13.4% in the euro area and 13.9% in EU loans, and 2.5% in cash and deposits in both the euro area and the EU.

Due to the involvement of EU governments in lending to some Member States, quarterly data on intergovernmental lending (IGL) are also published. The IGL as a percentage of GDP at the end of the second quarter of 2024 was 1.5% in the euro area and 1.3% in the EU.