Informations Rapides · 26 March 2021

At the end of Q4 2020, the Maastricht debt accounted for €2,650.1 billion Debt of the general government according to the Maastricht definition - fourth quarter 2020

At the end of Q4 2020, Maastricht’s debt reached €2,650.1 billion, it accounted for 115.7% of gross domestic product (GDP). After increases in the second (+€199.9 billion) and third quarters (+€36.1 billion), public debt fell by €23.7 billion this quarter. The debt of the first three quarters was partly fed into the general government's cash and deposit. In the fourth quarter, public administrations have used part of their cash flow to finance their borrowing needs and to reduce their debt. Net debt of the general government increased by €27.6 billion to reach 103.2% of GDP.

In the fourth quarter of 2020, the State’s contribution to debt decreased by €18.2 billion. In particular, the State reduced its outstanding short- and long-term negotiable securities (by -€5.5 billion and -€10.7 billion respectively). The State is also repaying its loans for €2.6 billion, including €0.8 billion in debt repayment to EDF following the rebudgeting of the contribution to the public electricity service (CSPE) and €0.8 billion in AFD loans guaranteed by the State. The social security administrations (Asso) reduced their contribution to the gross debt (-€18.8 billion). Acoss reduced its debt by €20.1 billion via its short-term securities and the Mutualité sociale agricole repaid their loan for €5.1billion. On the other hand, Unédic and Cades are increasing their debt by +€4.1 billion and +€0.9 billion.

The contribution of local government to the public debt increased sharply in the fourth quarter (€+13.3 billion) mainly due to the increase in negotiable liabilities (+€8.5 billion) and loans (+€4.8 billion). Société du Grand Paris (SGP) is issuing €6.2 billion in long-term securities and communes €1.1 billion. The increase in long-term loans was driven by communes (+€2.8 billion), départements (+€1.2 billion) and regions (+€0.8 billion). The increase in the debt of the Apul is partly fed by their deposits at the Treasury (+€6.5 billion), notably SGP (+€4.8 billion) and communes (+€1.9 billion).

Futhermore, the contribution of central agencies to the public debt is stable in this fourth quarter. In fact, the increase in short-term borrowings (+€0.2 billion) is offset by the decrease in long-term securities and borrowings (-€0.2 billion).

The net public debt reached €2,362.7 billion, a €27.6 billion increase (equivalent to 103.2% of GDP versus 101.7 % the previous quarter). During the first three quarters, the net debt had increased less strongly than gross debt due to the increase in government assets, mainly deposit. However, in the fourth quarter the fall in government deposits (-€48.7 billion) led to an increase in net debt, while gross debt fell. This decrease in cash flow is mainly due to the State and the social security funds (-€28.9 billion and -€21.3 billion respectively). In addition, the State granted a loan to Air France-KLM for €3.0 billion, in accordance with the financing plan signed in May 2020.

In the fourth quarter of 2020, the total value of listed equities and mutual funds held by general government increased by €17.0 billion to €257.4 billion after €240.4 billion in the third quarter. This increase is mainly due to the rebound of the stock markets with the announcement of the first vaccines; within general government, it mainly concerns the State (+€13.3 billion) and the Asso (+€3.1 billion).