COMMISSION STAFF WORKING PAPER Analysis by the Commission services of the action taken  by Bulgaria  in response to the Council Recommendation of 13 July 2010 with a view to bringing an end to the situation of excessive government deficit    COM(2011) 22 final SEC(2011) 114 final SEC(2011) 115 final SEC(2011) 116 final
Date: 2011-01-27
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Bulgaria, budget deficit, budget policy, budgetary control, economic analysis, economic recession, public debt, public expenditure, reflation, stability programme

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 27.1.2011 
SEC(2011) 113 final 

COMMISSION STAFF WORKING PAPER 

Analysis by the Commission services of the action taken 

by Bulgaria 

in response to the Council Recommendation of 13 July 2010 with a view to bringing an 
end to the situation of excessive government deficit 

COM(2011) 22 final 
SEC(2011) 114 final 
SEC(2011) 115 final 
SEC(2011) 116 final 

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   EN 

 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING PAPER 

Analysis by the Commission services of the action taken  

by Bulgaria 

in response to the Council Recommendation of 13 July 2010 with a view to bringing an 
end to the situation of excessive government deficit  

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

The  budgetary  impact  of  the  economic  downturn  and  expenditure  increases  stemming  from 
sizable  commitments  undertaken  by  the  outgoing  government  ahead  of  the  mid-year 
parliamentary elections in 2009 led to a swing in the general government balance in Bulgaria 
from  a  surplus  of  1.8%  of  GDP  in  2008  to  a  deficit  of  3.9%  in  20091.  Against  this 
background,  on  13  July  2010,  the  Council  decided  that  an  excessive  deficit  existed  and 
addressed recommendations to Bulgaria in accordance with Article 126(7) TFEU with a view 
to  bringing  an  end  to  the  situation  of  an  excessive  government  deficit  by  2011.2  In  its 
recommendations, the Council established a deadline of 13 January 2011 for effective action 
to be taken. 

In particular, the Council recommended to Bulgaria to: (a) take necessary measures to avoid a 
deterioration of the 2010 deficit beyond the planned 3.8% of GDP; (b) ensure a fiscal effort of 
at least ¾% of GDP in 2011; and (c) specify and implement the measures that are necessary to 
achieve  the  correction  of  the  excessive  deficit  by  2011.  To  limit  risks  to  the  adjustment, 
Bulgaria was recommended to strengthen fiscal governance and transparency by reinforcing 
the Ministry of finance's spending controls, strengthening the binding nature of its medium-
term  budgetary  framework  as  well  as  improving  the  monitoring  of  the  budget  execution 
throughout the year.  

This paper reviews the actions taken by Bulgaria to meet the above recommendations in light 
of the economic and budgetary developments since the Council recommendations were issued 
on 13 July 2010. In particular, it reviews the budgetary implementation in 2010 by comparing 
the projected budgetary developments in 2010 according to the Commission services' autumn 
2010  forecast  with  the  economic  and  budgetary  scenario  underpinning  the  Council 
recommendations.  The  latter  was  based  on  the  Commission  services'  spring  2010  forecast 
published on 5 May 2010 and the budgetary projections underlying the subsequent mid-year 
revision  of  the  2010  budget  adopted  by  the  Bulgarian  parliament  on  8  July.3  For  2011,  the 
basis for the assessment of action taken towards the correction of the excessive deficit is again 
the Commission services' autumn 2010 forecast, which incorporates the main policy changes 

1  

2  

3  

EN 

With the October 2010 EDP notification the general government balance outcomes in 2008 and 2009 
were  revised  to  a  surplus  of  1.7%  and  a  deficit  of  4.7%  of  GDP,  respectively.  The  main  reasons 
included methodological changes with respect to introducing time-adjusted cash recording of certain tax 
revenues as well as some additional government liabilities in the second half of 2010. 
All  EDP-related  documents 
at 
for  Bulgaria 
http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/sgp/deficit/countries/bulgaria_en.htm 
Given  that  the  2010  budget  update  took  place  in  the  middle  of  the  year,  the  revised  budgetary 
projections were not incorporated in the Bulgaria' convergence programme update of January 2010. 

following  website: 

can  be 

found 

the 

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in  the  draft  2011  budget,  approved  by  the  Bulgarian  government  on  30  September  and 
adopted by the parliament on 2 December 2010. 

2. 

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS 

Bulgaria  entered  into  recession  somewhat  later  than  its  neighbours.  Economic  activity 
contracted  by  4.9%  in  2009,  compared  to  4.2%  for  the  EU  average,  and  the  deterioration 
continued into the first quarter of 2010, when the economic activity appears to have bottomed 
out. Underpinned by strong exports, GDP growth resumed in the second quarter and gained 
momentum  in  the  second  half  of  the  year.  The  Commission  services'  autumn  2010  forecast 
expects real GDP to have remained broadly flat for 2010 as a whole.  

The  outlook  for  the  Bulgarian  economy  has  remained  broadly  unchanged  since  the 
Commission  services'  spring  2010  forecast  underpinning  the  Council  recommendations  of 
13 July  2010  (Table  1).  The  recovery  is  set  to  become  more  broad-based  and  accelerate  in 
2011 and 2012, with real GDP growth reaching 2.6% and 3.8%, respectively. Growth will be 
underpinned by both strong external demand as well as a pick-up of domestic demand. While 
the  recovery  might  be  slightly  stronger  than  in  the  other  EU  countries,  growth  will  remain 
well below the pre-crisis average.  

Table 1: Comparison of macroeconomic developments and forecasts 

Real GDP (% change)
Contributions to real GDP growth:
          Final domestic demand
          Changes in inventories
          Net exports
Employment (% change)
GDP deflator (% change)

2009
outturn
-4.9

-13.1
-2.7
10.9
-2.7
4.1

2010

2011

COM SF10 COM AF10 COM SF10 COM AF10

0.0

-3.3
0.1
3.3
-1.2
0.1

-0.1

-5.2
0.5
4.6
-5.2
2.4

2.7

2.2
0.2
0.3
0.6
3.0

2.6

2.3
0.1
0.3
0.7
2.6

Source : COM SF10 - Commission services' spring 2010 forecast; COM AF10 - Commission services' 
autumn 2010 forecast.

The  Bulgarian  authorities  have  revised  their  economic  projections  several  times  during  the 
course of the year: in the convergence programme update of January 2010 economic activity 
was  expected  to  expand  by  0.3%  and  3.8%  in  2010  and  2011,  respectively;  the  projections 
underlying the revised 2010 budget in July envisaged real GDP to grow by 1% in 2010, while 
according  to  the  macroeconomic  scenario  underpinning  the  2011  budget  real  GDP  was 
expected to grow by 0.7% and 3.6% in 2010 and 2011, respectively4. 

3. 

BUDGETARY IMPLEMENTATION IN 2010 

According to the Commission services' autumn 2010 forecast, the general government budget 
deficit will come down to 3.8% of GDP in 2010, from 4.7% of GDP in 2009, in line with the 

4  

According to additional information provided in early January 2011, the authorities have revised their 
projection for real GDP growth in 2010 further down to 0.2%. 

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target set in the revised 2010 budget underpinning the July 2010 Council recommendations. 5 
The latest forecast of the Ministry of Finance projects a slightly better deficit ratio at 3.6% of 
GDP. 

The  initial  2010  budget,  approved  in  December  2009,  targeted  a  small  general  government 
budget  deficit  of  0.7%  of  GDP  on  a  cash  basis.  However,  the  budget  execution  in  the  first 
quarter of 2010 showed that the deficit target was unrealistic. By end-March, the accumulated 
budget deficit increased to 2.4% of the full-year GDP compared to a surplus of 0.8% of GDP 
in the first quarter of 2009. The increase in the budget deficit was due to lower-than-expected 
tax  revenues,  largely  as  a  result  of  the  continued  change  in  the  growth  structure  and  the 
associated higher VAT and excise tax refunds, as well as to increased social expenditure on 
pensions and unemployment benefits.  

In  the  April  2010  EDP  notification  the  Bulgarian  authorities  still  expected  the  general 
government  budget  deficit  to  fall  below  the  reference  value  to  2%  of  GDP  already  in  2010 
underpinned by a recovery in real GDP growth to 1% and an additional consolidation package 
to the tune of 2¼% of GDP approved on 31 March 2010. The Commission services' spring 
2010 forecast, published on 5 May 2010, projected the general government budget deficit to 
improve to  2.8% of GDP in  2010 and  further  to 2% of GDP  in 2011,  based  on  a no-policy 
change  assumption,  an  expected  gradual  improvement  in  the  growth  outlook,  and  an 
assessment of the budgetary impact of the announced consolidation measures. 

In June 2010, however, in view of the deteriorating fiscal situation, the government decided to 
revise the 2010 budget. Despite an improved macro-economic scenario of real GDP growth of 
1% against a decline of 2% in the original budget, the general government deficit target was 
raised to 4.8% of GDP on a cash basis (3.8% of GDP in ESA95 terms) against 0.7% in the 
initial  budget  and  balanced  budget  in  the  January  2010  update  of  the  Convergence 
Programme.  The  budget  revision  reflected  a  significant  downward  adjustment  of  projected 
government  revenues  –  by  BGN  2.1 bn  or  2.9%  of  GDP  while  overall  expenditure  was 
increased by around 0.7 bn or 1% of GDP. In addition to ensuring the proper functioning of 
automatic stabilizers, the increase in budgeted expenditure reflected the need to offset overdue 
liabilities  from  the  previous  year.  The  government  decided  to  finance  the  resulting  budget 
deficit mainly through the use of accumulated fiscal reserves instead of resorting to the bond 
markets. 

Most recent public finance data shows that Bulgaria is on track to meet its revised fiscal target 
for  2010.  At  the  end  of  November  2010,  the  accumulated  general  government  cash  deficit 
increased to 2.7% of the estimated full-year GDP with revenues having dropped by 5.0% y-o-
y and expenditures having increased by 1.4% y-o-y in nominal terms.  

Budget  revenue  continued  to  underperform  throughout  2010.  For  the  year  as  a  whole,  the 
authorities expect the overall revenue-to-GDP ratio to be around ⅓ percentage points below 
the  level  projected  in  the  revised  annual  budget.  In  the  Commission  services'  autumn  2010 
forecast the revenue ratio is projected to be somewhat above the authorities' current estimate, 
largely due to a denominator effect. The main reason for the revenue underperformance is the 
continued weaker-than-expected economic activity with an on-going contraction in the direct 
and indirect tax bases and a higher than expected decline in employment. To prevent a further 

5  

The expected 3.8% of GDP fiscal deficit outcome for 2010 includes a one-off deficit increasing item of 
0.1% of GDP related to cancellation of third countries' debt. 

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drop in revenues, the authorities have undertaken a number of measures to improve collection 
rates, such as tighter external border controls, intensified tax audits and customs checks, and 
greater efforts to collect arrears owed to the government. 

On  the  expenditure  side,  overall  spending  growth  was  constrained  to  below  nominal  GDP 
growth through September 2010, thus contributing to containing the widening in the budget 
deficit.  However,  in  line  with  the  practice  of  previous  years,  spending  is  expected  to  have 
accelerated  significantly  in  the  last  two  months  of  2010  when  the  government  settled  its 
liabilities  incurred  earlier  in  the  year  as  well  as  accumulated  arrears,  mainly  in  the  hospital 
sector.  Nevertheless,  for  the  year  as  a  whole,  the  authorities  expect  the  expenditure-to-GDP 
ratio to be around ⅔ percentage points below the annual budgeted level, mainly due to savings 
in  subsidies  and  capital  spending.  In  the  Commission  services'  autumn  2010  forecast  the 
expenditure ratio is projected to be slightly above the authorities' estimate. This is explained 
by  higher  current  primary  expenditure  in  the  Commission  services  projections,  partly 
compensated for by lower capital expenditure. 

Table 2: Composition of the budgetary adjustment 

2009

outturn

% of 
GDP
35.9

CP Jan 
2010
% of 
GDP
37.5

2010

2011

CP Jan 2010

Budget 2011

COM AF 2010       Budget 2011

COM AF 2010     

% ch   
yoy
12.2

% of 
GDP
39.2

% ch   
yoy
-4.4

% of 
GDP
33.4

% of 
GDP
34.1

% ch   
yoy
9.5

% of 
GDP
34.3

% ch   
yoy
5.4

% of 
GDP
34.1

-2.8
-2.5
-5.9
-7.3
-6.2

-6.3

0.9
-4.4
6.4
24.3
-4.0
-81.4
-3.0

15.1
5.6
7.7
7.6
40.6

16.0
6.3
8.0
7.2
39.4

18.7
11.1
3.0
9.5
-0.7

17.4
6.0
7.7
8.1
39.2

39.8

38.6

-1.1

38.3

-3.5
n.a.
n.a.
43.7
6.4
-14.9
17.5

9.4
7.1
13.7
0.9
4.9
3.9
0.8

-4.7
-3.9
0.0
-4.9

9.5
n.a
n.a
0.7
5.1
4.0
0.8

-1.1
-1.3
n.a
-4.9

8.8
n.a
n.a.
1.2
5.1
3.2
0.9

0.0
0.9
n.a
0.3

% ch   yoy

-2.9

-4.9
-1.9
-6.0
3.6
-4.4

14.2
5.3
7.0
6.9
37.0

14.0
5.3
7.1
7.7
38.0

6.5
12.8
11.7
10.8
6.0

14.2
5.6
7.4
7.1
36.8

36.3

-4.3

37.3

5.8

36.0

9.2
6.6
14.1
1.0
4.6
0.7
0.7

-3.6
-2.9
n.a.
0.2

-3.0
-9.7
6.1
9.0
-6.6
-34.3
-9.0

0.2
6.0
0.4
50.0
-0.9
168.1
14.6

8.9
6.3
14.2
0.9
4.5
2.5
0.7

-3.8
-3.1
0.1
-0.1

8.6
6.6
13.3
1.5
4.3
1.8
0.8

-2.5
-1.7
n.a.
3.6

4.5
4.4
7.6
5.8
2.9

2.5

0.0
6.4
1.5
7.5
2.9
4.8
21.0

13.9
5.3
7.2
7.7
37.1

36.3

8.4
6.4
13.7
0.9
4.4
2.5
0.8

-2.9
-2.1
0.0
2.6

Revenue
of which:
- Taxes on production and imports
- Current taxes on imcome, wealth, etc.
- Social contributions
- Other (resedual)
Expenditure
of which:
- Primary expenditure
      of which:
     - Compensation of employees
     - Intermediate consumption
     - Social payments
     - Subsidies
     - Gross fixed capital formation
     - Other (residual)
- Interest expenditure

General government balance (GGB)
Primary balance
One-off and other temporary measures
Real GDP growth

Source: CP Jan 2010 - Convergence Programme January 2010; Budget 2011 - Bulgaria's Budget for 2011 and additional information provided by the authorities about the expected 
execution of the budget 2010; COM AF10 - Commission services' autumn 2010 forecast.

4. 

PROJECTED BUDGETARY DEVELOPMENTS IN 2011 AND 2012 

For 2011 and 2012, the Commission services' autumn 2010 forecast projects deficits of 2.9% 
and 1.8% of GDP, implying annual deficit reductions of 0.9% and 1.1% of GDP, respectively, 
based on a no-policy change assumption, an expected improvement in the economic outlook 
and a prudent assessment of the fiscal consolidation measures envisaged in the 2011 budget. 
In structural terms, the expected 2011 and 2012 fiscal outcomes imply a gradual adjustment 
and a contractionary fiscal policy stance with annual consolidation efforts of ¾% and ½% of 
GDP, respectively. 

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Bulgaria  will  target  slightly  lower  deficits  of  2.5%  and  1.5%  of  GDP  in  2011  and  2012, 
respectively, both on cash and accruals (ESA 95) basis, with the difference mostly explained 
by a projected more buoyant and more broad based economic recovery. The main reasons for 
the 0.4 pps and 0.3 pps higher deficit projections in the Commission services' autumn 2010 
forecast  for  2011  and  2012,  respectively,  compared  to  those  of  the  authorities  are  mostly 
twofold.  Firstly,  in  the  Commission  services’  forecast  the  underlying  less  buoyant  growth 
scenario  implies  also  a  less  revenue-rich  composition  of  growth  with  a  lower  increase  of 
indirect  and  direct  tax  bases  than  that  of  the  authorities.  Secondly,  the  projected  lower 
increase  in  budget  revenue  in  the  Commission  services’  forecast  is  based  on  a  more 
conservative  assessment  of  the  budgetary  impact  of  the  envisaged  revenue-enhancing 
measures with respect to tax policy and tax collection.  

The  2011  fiscal  target  would  represent  an  improvement  of  1.3%  of  GDP  in  the  general 
government  budget  balance  with  respect  to  the  expected  2010  budget  execution.  The 
authorities  plan  to  reach  the  2011  fiscal  target  mostly  as  a  result  of  the  expected  economic 
recovery,  better  revenue  collection,  revenue-enhancing  measures,  increased  spending 
efficiency  and  a  containment  of  major  expenditure  items  broadly  at  their  2010  level  in 
nominal terms.  

On  the  revenue  side,  the  2011  increases  in  excise  tax  rates  on  some  energy  products, 
cigarettes  and  tobacco  are  expected  to  result  in  0.09%  of  GDP  higher  revenue,  while  the 
delayed effect of the 2010 increases in excise tax rates on tobacco products is expected to be 
0.07% of GDP. The increase by 1.8 pps. of the pension contribution rate should bring in 0.5% 
of  GDP  additional  revenue.  In  addition,  the  authorities  expect  to  raise  0.15%  of  GDP  by 
increasing  the  minimum  mandatory  insured  income  thresholds  for  main  economic  activities 
and  professional  groups  by  5.6%  compared  to  2010.  They  also  plan  to  levy  a  10% 
withholding tax on income of foreign-controlled legal entities established in preferential tax 
regime areas (off-shore zones) with a source in Bulgaria. A new tax on insurance premiums 
will be introduced that is estimated to yield 0.02% of GDP. Furthermore, a set of measures are 
aimed at improving tax enforcement and collection of tax arrears, i.e. the incrimination of the 
non-payment  of  social  security  contributions  as  well  as  an  increase  in  the  number  and 
frequency of tax audits. 

On the expenditure side, total expenditures are projected to decline by 1.3 pps., from 37% of 
GDP in the expected 2010 budget execution to 36.8% of GDP in 2011 mostly as a result of 
the  increase  in  nominal  GDP.  In  nominal  terms,  the  authorities  will  aim  at  maintaining 
compensations  of  employees  in  the  public  sector,  subsidies,  social  expenditure  and 
maintenance outlays at their levels in the 2010 revised budget, while capital expenditure is set 
to decline to its 2009 level6. Pensions will not be increased in accordance with the so called 
“Swiss  rule”7  both  in  2011  and  in  2012.  Additional  expenditure-containment  measures  are 
also  planned,  namely  improved  spending  efficiency and  limiting the  number  of  new 
recruits in the public sector. 

For  2012,  according  to  the  medium-term  fiscal  projections,  Bulgaria  aims  to  scale  back  the 
deficit to 1.5% of GDP, benefiting from further improvement in the economic outlook as well 
as  additional  consolidation  measures  still  to  be  specified  and  adopted.  Changes  in  the  main 

6  

7  

The  main  total  expenditure  sub-components  policy  objectives  are  defined  on  a  cash  basis  and  do  not 
correspond directly to the fiscal figures on an accruals (ESA95) basis. 
It mandates pension adjustments equal to 50% of the increase in inflation and 50% of the increase in the 
annual insured income. 

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direct and indirect taxes are not envisaged except further harmonization of excise tax rates in 
line with the EU requirements. 

The  Commission  services  see  risks  to  the  achievement  of  the  2011  and  2012  deficit  targets 
mainly  stemming  from  the  strength  and  broadness  of  the  expected  economic  recovery, 
possible underperformance with respect to revenue collection, difficulties to contain the build-
up of expenditure in line with the projections underlying the achievement of the fiscal targets 
as well as a less than optimal improvement in expenditure control mechanisms. 

5. 

FISCAL GOVERNANCE AND THE QUALITY OF THE PUBLIC FINANCES 

The  Bulgarian  fiscal  framework  performed  relatively  well  in  the  favourable  economic 
environment  prior  to  the  crisis;  as  the  government  consistently  met  its  fiscal  targets  and 
accumulated sizeable fiscal buffers. The negative 2009 deficit surprise, however, appears to 
have  been  related  also  to  procedural  weaknesses  regarding  expenditure  planning  and 
commitment control on an accruals basis, in addition to the negative impact of the downturn 
on the budget balances. 

The  Commission  services’  assessment  of  the  convergence  programme  update  of  January 
20108  highlighted  the  importance  of  addressing  the  shortcomings  of  the  fiscal  framework 
related to the existence of certain discretionary powers of the central government which could 
undermine the transparency of the budget procedures and democratic control by parliament. 
In  addition,  it  was  emphasized  that  the  framework  does  not  incorporate  multi-annual  rules, 
and  that  the  expenditure  ceilings  (set  in  the  course  of  the  medium-term  fiscal  planning)  are 
only binding in the short-term. The existence of administrative inefficiencies in tax collection 
contributed  to  the  large  revenue  shortfalls  in  2009-2010  in  addition  to  the  negative  revenue 
impact of the crisis. At the moment, no independent institution is involved in the formulation 
of the macroeconomic assumptions underlying the ex-ante budgetary projections.  

Bulgaria  undertook  several  initiatives  to  improve  expenditure  control,  monitoring  and 
reporting systems in order to limit the risk of expenditure overruns in 2011 and reappearance 
of accrued liabilities. A special clause in the 2011 State Budget Law will give to the Council 
of Ministers the exclusive power to define and update ceilings for the contractual obligations 
of  central  government  institutions  and  entities.  This  will  increase  the  central  control  at  the 
planning and approval stages, and thus help reducing the deficit bias, while preserving some 
flexibility  at  the  budgetary  execution  stage  permitting  to  shift  resources  between  different 
programs in order to ensure efficiency gains. In addition, a limit on the incurred liabilities to 
suppliers  has  been  defined.  As  a  general  principle,  the  authorities  plan  to  decrease  the 
differences  between  public  finance  data  in  accruals  (ESA  95)  terms  and  according  to  the 
national (cash based) methodology. Consequently, the 2011 and 2012 fiscal targets are set to 
coincide  for  both  reporting  methodologies.  A  number  of  recently  initiated  and  approved 
structural  reforms  in  the  areas  of  public  administration,  social  security  and  pensions  are 
expected  to  increase  the  efficiency  of  public  expenditures  and  to  improve  public  finances 
sustainability both in the medium and in the long-run. 

8 

Bulgaria's Macro Fiscal Assessment can be found at: 
http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/sgp/pdf/20_scps/2009-10/02_technical_assessment/bg_2010-03-
31_ta_en.pdf  

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At  the  same  time,  no  specific  measures  have  been  outlined  by  Bulgarian  authorities  to 
strengthen the binding nature of  the medium-term budgetary framework, while the budgetary 
adjustment  might  come  to  a  large  extent  at  the  expense  of  capital  expenditures  preserving 
some of the budgetary rigidities in the current primary expenditures. 

Table 3: Comparison of key macroeconomic and budgetary projections 

Real GDP 
(% change) 

Primary balance 
(% of GDP) 

Output gap 
(% of potential GDP) 

General government 
balance 
(% of GDP) 

2012 
3.8 
4.7 
4.8 
-2.7 
n.a. 
-2.5 
-1.8 
-1.5 
0.1 
-1.0 
-0.2 
1.1 
-0.9 
n.a. 
1.0 
-0.9 
n.a. 
1.0 
20.8 
18.2 
14.4 
Source: COM - Commission services’ 2010 autumn forecast; BG - Bulgaria's Budget for 2011 and additional 
information provided by the authorities in January 2011; CP -Convergence Programme January 2010. 

COM 
BG 
CP 
COM 
BG 
CP 
COM 
BG 
CP 
COM 
BG 
CP 
COM 
BG 
CP 
COM 
BG 
CP 
COM 
BG 
CP 

2009 
-4.9 
-4.9 
-4.9 
-2.9 
n.a. 
-3.5 
-4.7 
-4.7 
-1.9 
-3.9 
-3.9 
-1.3 
-3.6 
n.a. 
-0.7 
-3.6 
n.a. 
-0.7 
14..7 
14.7 
14.7 

2010 
-0.1 
0.2 
0.3 
-4.8 
n.a. 
-5.7 
-3.8 
-3.6 
0.0 
-3.1 
-2.9 
0.9 
-2.1 
n.a. 
1.9 
-2.2 
n.a. 
1.9 
18.2 
15.9 
14.6 

2011 
2.6 
3.6 
3.8 
-4.2 
n.a. 
-4.7 
-2.9 
-2.5 
0.1 
-2.1 
-1.7 
1.0 
-1.4 
n.a. 
1.7 
-1.4 
n.a. 
1.7 
20.2 
19.5 
14.5 

2008 
6.2 
6.2 
6.0 
4.9 
n.a. 
4.8 
1.7 
1.7 
1.8 
2.5 
2.5 
2.7 
-0.1 
n.a. 
0.2 
-0.1 
n.a. 
0.2 
13.7 
13.7 
14.1 

Cyclically-adjusted 
balance 
(% of GDP) 

Government gross 
debt 
(% of GDP) 

Structural balance 
(% of GDP) 

EN 

8 

   EN