(22 June 2017) – Significant differences can be observed across the European Union regarding the sector in which government debt is held.
Among Member States for which data are available, the share of public debt held by non-residents in 2016 was highest in Cyprus (79%), followed by Latvia (72%), Austria (71%), Finland (70%) and Lithuania (69%).
In contrast, the largest proportion of debt held by the (resident) financial corporations sector was recorded in Denmark (67%), ahead of Sweden (64%), Luxembourg (63%), Croatia, Italy and Malta (all 62%).
Generally across the EU, less than 10% of debt was held by the resident non-financial sectors (non-financial corporations, households and non-profit institutions serving households), with the noticeable exceptions of Malta (28%), Hungary (18%), Ireland and Portugal (both 11%).