ZAGREB, April 20, 2018 - Croatia recorded for the first time a general government surplus of 2.7 billion kuna in 2017, while the debt to GDP ratio fell below 78%, figures from the national statistical office (DZS) show.
A report on the excessive budget deficit procedure and general government debt, released on Friday, shows that in 2017 consolidated general government surplus was 2.75 billion kuna, or 0.8% of GDP, while in 2016 the deficit was 3.2 billion kuna, or 0.9% of GDP.
It was the first general government surplus since 2002 when this data started to be collected.
At the end of 2017, public debt reached 283.3 billion kuna, with the debt to GDP ratio falling to 78%, a record low since 2012.
The debt, however, is 1.6 billion kuna or 0.6 percent higher than at the end of 2016.
Since last year the economy grew by 2.8%, faster than in 2016, the debt to GDP ratio also fell, by 2.6 percentage points from the end of 2016, when it stood at 80.6% of GDP.
