France's public debt exceeded $3 trln in 2022: Stat. Institute

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
28 Mar 2023 20:43
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How will the French ever afford to repay that debt when the overall value produced by the country is insufficient?

Facade of the building of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, in Paris, on August 2, 2021. (AFP)

France's public debt has exceeded the $3 trillion mark (€2,950.0 billion) which marks an increase of 126.4 billion euros ($137 billion) over the past year, the French National Institute of Statistics reported on Tuesday.

This means that the entirety of the french population lives off credit.

"General government Maastricht debt (or consolidated gross debt in nominal value) increased by €126.4 billion in 2022 and stood at €2,950.0 billion," the statement read.

However, in percentage terms, the national debt has slightly decreased from 112.9% of GDP (2021) to 111.6% (2022).

As for the public sector budget deficit, it decreased from 6.5% of GDP (2021) to 4.7% (2022).

🇫🇷 Le déficit public s’est élevé à 4,7 % du PIB en France en 2022 (soit 124,9 milliards d'euros) et la dette publique a atteint 111,6 % du PIB (source : @InseeFr).#France #DéficitPublic #DettePublique https://t.co/icseCgOIjE pic.twitter.com/vapTCKu27A
— Mickaël LE PRIOL 📊 (@mick_le_priol) March 28, 2023

In September of last year, French Minister Delegate of Public Accounts Gabriel Attal forecasted that the national debt would surpass $3 trillion within weeks.

The official noted that the government paid this year 18 billion more euros compared to last year to cover debt services.

He further added that the debt service this year will cost approximately 51.7 billion euros.