Pandemic spending lifts state debt ratio to 81% of GDP

Debt

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Government expenditures related to the coronavirus pandemic lifted Hungary's state debt relative to GDP to 81% at the end of the fourth quarter, a first reading of data released by the National Bank of Hungary (MNB) on Wednesday shows, according to a report by state news wire MTI.

The ratio rose from 74.2% at the end of Q3 and 65.5% at the end of 2019.

In absolute terms, state debt reached HUF 38.368 trillion at the end of 2020.

Hungary's constitution stipulates that year-end state debt relative to GDP must decline until the ratio reaches 50%, but the government anticipated the level would rise last year because of spending on pandemic defense and economic stimulus.

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