Eurozone Govt. Deficit Narrows Again, Debt Ratio Falls

(RTTNews) - Eurozone general government deficit narrowed and the public debt declined for a second straight quarter in the three months to June, data from Eurostat showed Monday.

The deficit-to-GDP ratio fell to -1.5 percent from 1.6 percent in the first quarter. A year ago, the figure was 2.1 percent.

The ratio for EU28 dropped to 1.8 percent from 1.9 percent. In the same period last year, the ratio was 2.4 percent.

The government debt-to-GDP ratio declined to 91.2 percent from 91.3 percent. A year ago, the rate was 92.1 percent.

In the EU28, the ratio 84.3 percent from 84.5 percent. In the year-ago period, the figure was 87.5 percent.

The Maastricht Treaty prescribes a ratio of 3 percent of GDP for budget deficit and 60 percent for public debt.

In the second quarter, the biggest debt ratios were recorded in Greece, Italy and Portugal. The lowest rates were in Estonia, Luxembourg and Bulgaria.