Public debt makes the biggest jump in five years. It reaches record of 262 billion euros

If in March the public debt had fallen because of the use of the financial cushion, in April the pandemic determined the biggest rise in five years.

Public debt, from the point of view of Maastricht, rose by 7,280 million euros – the biggest monthly increase since the beginning of 2015 (7,782 million in January 2015) – to 262,056 million euros in April, the highest ever value of public debt stock. The data were released this Monday by the Bank of Portugal.

The increase is explained by issuing long-term bonds, which rose from 146.9 billion euros in March to 153 billion euros in April, reflecting an increase of 6.1 billion euros in a single month. In short-term bonds, the increase was of just over one billion euros from 10 to 11.1 billion euros.

In the statistical information note, the Bank of Portugal explains the increase: “The 7.2 billion euros securities issued in April contributed essentially to this increase, with a 5 billion euros syndicated issue of a Treasury bond by the Portuguese Republic.”

In the first quarter, the public debt ratio, i.e. the stock compared to the size of the economy, which is the most widely followed indicator at the international level, had risen to 120.3% of GDP in a period in which GDP fell 2.3%. The public debt ratio closed 2019 at 117.7% of GDP.