Eurozone's gov't debt-to-GDP ratio rises to 90 pct in Q2

The eurozone's government debt rose to 90 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) by the end of the second quarter this year from 88.2 percent a quarter earlier, the statistics office of the European Union (EU) said Wednesday. In the 27-nation EU, the ratio at the end of the second quarter this year increased from 83.5 percent to 84.9 percent on a quarterly basis, according to a statement on the website of Eurostat. The highest debt-to-GDP ratio at the end of the second quarter was recorded in Greece at 150.3 percent, followed by Italy at 126.1 percent, Portugal at 117.5 percent, and Ireland at 111.5 percent. The four debt-ridden countries all saw their debt-to-GDP ratio increase quarter on quarter, from 132.4 percent, 123.3 percent, 111.7 percent and 108.5 percent, respectively, at the end of the first quarter. Compared with the first quarter of 2012, 20 EU countries registered an increase in their debt levels at the end of the second quarter of 2012, six a decrease and one remained stable, Eurostat said. The data also showed that Estonia, Bulgaria and Luxembourg saw the lowest debt levels at 7.3 percent, 16.5 percent and 20.9 percent respectively. In terms of the forms of debt, securities other than shares accounted for 78.6 percent of the eurozone's and 80.1 percent of the EU's general government debt by the end of the second quarter, while loans made up 18.6 percent and 16.1 percent respectively, Eurostat said.