Eurozone government debt to GDP ratio rises to 93.4% in Q2

Government debt of the eurozone accounted for 93.4 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) for the second quarter this year, up from 92.3 percent for the first quarter, official figures showed. In the European Union, the government debt-to-GDP ratio increased to 86.8 percent in the second quarter from 85.9 percent in the previous quarter, Eurostat figures showed. Compared with the second quarter of 2012, the debt-to-GDP ratio rose in both the euro area, from 89.9 percent to 93.4 percent, and the EU, from 84.7 percent to 86.8 percent, Eurostat said. The highest government debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of the second quarter was recorded in Greece, at 169.1 percent, followed by Italy and Portugal, at 133.3 percent and 131.3 percent respectively. Compared with the first quarter of 2013, 19 EU member states registered an increase in their debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of the second quarter of 2013, six a decrease and three no change.