Key facts
- Eurozone government debt reached 88.8% of GDP in Q2 2026.
- Italy's debt ratio is 139.9%, close to Greece's 140.8%.
- France's debt-to-GDP ratio climbed to 119.1% in Q2 2026.
- France's 10-year bond yield surpassed 5% for the first time since 2002.
- EU government debt stood at 82.9% of GDP in Q2 2026.
Government debt in the eurozone rose to 88.8% of GDP in the second quarter of 2026, up from 87.3% a year earlier, Eurostat reported. Italy's debt ratio is now less than one percentage point below Greece's, the most indebted member state, while France's debt climbed to 119.1% as its borrowing costs topped 5%.
Across the wider EU, government debt rose to 82.9% of GDP in the second quarter, from 81.4% a year earlier. In cash terms, eurozone governments owed some €14.4 trillion. Full-year figures show EU debt rose to 81.5% of GDP in 2025 from 80.3% in 2024, while the bloc's budget deficit held at 3.1%, just above the EU's 3% limit.
Greece remained the most indebted EU country at 140.8% of GDP in the second quarter, but Italy was just behind at 139.9%. Greece's ratio has fallen by 11.2 percentage points in a year, while Italy's rose by 1.3 percentage points in the second quarter alone. France has the third-highest debt-to-GDP ratio at 119.1%, up 3.7 percentage points in a year. Debt also remained above 100% of GDP in Belgium and Spain.
The figures landed on the same day the yield on France's 10-year government bond rose above 5% for the first time since 2002. France's deficit was 5.1% of GDP last year, and Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu is debating the 2027 budget amid a lack of parliamentary majority for spending cuts. Ratings agency Moody's is due to review France's credit rating on Friday.