Croatia’s debt-to-GDP among lowest in EU as Eurozone average grows

Zagreb

ZAGREB, 21 July 2025 (Hina) – Croatia’s public debt, expressed as a share of gross domestic product (GDP), rose in the first quarter of 2025 for the first time in a year, according to data released by Eurostat on Monday.

Despite the increase, Croatia remains well below the European Union’s 60 percent reference limit and significantly under the eurozone average.

At the end of March, Croatia’s consolidated general government debt stood at 50.63 billion euros, up 1.35 billion euros from the final quarter of 2024.

As a share of GDP, this represented an increase from 57.6 percent in December to 58.4 percent.

Croatia now ranks just below Poland, where the debt-to-GDP ratio stood at 57.4 percent. Both countries remain comfortably below the eurozone average of 88.0 percent, which rose by 0.6 percentage points over the previous quarter.

Across the entire EU, the average increased by 0.8 percentage points to 81.8 percent.

Comparisons Across the EU

Thirteen EU countries exceeded the 60 percent debt-to-GDP threshold. Greece recorded the highest ratio, with public debt exceeding GDP by just over 50 percent. Italy followed, with debt surpassing its GDP by roughly 37 percent.

France also remained above 100 percent, while Spain, Belgium, and Portugal recorded ratios close to or slightly above GDP.

By contrast, the lowest ratios were seen in Bulgaria and Estonia, with debt levels at just 23.9 and 24.1 percent of GDP respectively.

Quarterly and Annual Changes

In 16 EU countries, the debt-to-GDP ratio increased over the first quarter. The largest quarterly rises were reported in Austria and Slovakia, each up by 3.5 percentage points, followed by Slovenia with a 2.9-point increase.

On the other end, Ireland saw the most significant quarterly reduction, with its debt ratio falling by 3.7 points. Latvia and Greece also recorded modest declines of around one percentage point.

Looking at year-on-year comparisons, 13 EU countries recorded increases. Poland and Finland saw the largest jumps, rising by 6.1 and 5.1 percentage points respectively.

Greece posted the most notable annual decrease, down by 9.3 points. Cyprus and Ireland followed with reductions of 8.2 and 6.1 points.

Croatia was also among the countries with a notable drop, with its debt-to-GDP ratio down by 3.6 points compared to the first quarter of 2024. Denmark followed closely, with a decline of 3.2 points.

Although Croatia saw a modest quarterly increase in its debt level, the country remains in a strong position compared to much of the EU and eurozone.