In the first quarter of 2026, the seasonally adjusted general government deficit to GDP ratio stood at 3.1% in the euro area (EA21) and in the EU.
The euro area deficit to GDP ratio decreased slightly compared to 3.2% in the fourth quarter of 2025, while the EU deficit to GDP ratio decreased compared to 3.4% in the previous quarter.
This data was released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.
In the first quarter of 2026, government total revenue in the euro area amounted to 47.1% of GDP.
The decrease compared with 47.3% in the fourth quarter of 2025 was mainly due to a small increase in seasonally adjusted government total revenue in absolute terms by around €1 billion being outweighed by an increase in nominal GDP.
Government total expenditure in the euro area stood at 50.2% of GDP, a decrease compared with the previous quarter (50.4% of GDP) due to a decrease in seasonally adjusted total government expenditure by around -€1 billion as well as an increase in nominal GDP.
In the EU, government total revenue was 46.6% of GDP in the first quarter of 2026, with the ratio decreased compared to 46.7% in the fourth quarter of 2025. Seasonally adjusted total revenue in the EU increased by around €9 billion compared with the fourth quarter of 2025.
Government total expenditure in the EU was 49.8% of GDP, an decrease compared with 50.1% of GDP in the previous quarter. Seasonally adjusted total expenditure decreased by around -€2 billion compared with the previous quarter.
Government debt at 88.9% of GDP in euro area
At the end of the first quarter of 2026, the general government gross debt to GDP ratio in the euro area (EA21) stood at 88.9%, an increase compared with 87.7% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2025. In the EU, the ratio also increased from 81.8% to 82.9%.
Compared with the first quarter of 2025, the government debt to GDP ratio increased in both the euro area (from 87.2% to 88.9%) and the EU (from 81.4% to 82.9%).
At the end of the first quarter of 2026, the general government debt was made up of 84.3% debt securities in the euro area and 83.6% in the EU, 13.2% loans in the euro area and 13.9% in the EU and 2.5% currency and deposits in both the euro area and the EU.
Due to the involvement of EU Member States’ governments in lending to certain Member States, quarterly data on intergovernmental lending (IGL) are also published.
The IGL as percentage of GDP at the end of the first quarter of 2026 stood at 1.3% in the euro area and at 1.1% in the EU.
