French public debt increases by 40.5 billion euros and reaches 114% of GDP in the first quarter of 2025, according to INSEE.
By The New Obs with AFP
Published on , updated on
Minister of the Economy Eric Lombard in Paris, April 9, 2025. JEE/SIPA
France's public debt reached €3,345.8 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2025, representing 114% of gross domestic product (GDP), an increase of €40.5 billion compared to the end of last year, INSEE announced on Thursday, June 26.
The debt had increased by 3.8 billion euros in the fourth quarter of 2024 to 3,305.3 billion euros, or 113.2% of GDP, according to the National Institute of Statistics.
This information comes as the French government, seeking a budget for 2026 and threatened with censure by the left following the failure of pension negotiations between social partners, is convening an "alert committee" this Thursday to discuss the uncertainties likely to affect public finances.
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The eurozone's second-largest economy after Germany is also one of its worst performers when it comes to deficits. France's public deficit (5.8% of GDP) was the worst in the eurozone last year. The government intends to bring it below the European ceiling of 3% of GDP by 2029, after 5.4% of GDP in 2025 and 4.6% in 2026.
The State increased its debt by 36.7 billion eurosIn the first quarter of 2025, the State's contribution to the public debt increased by 36.7 billion euros after a decrease of 3.7 billion euros in the previous quarter.
Local government debt also increased (+600 million), but less sharply than in the previous quarter when it grew by almost 12 billion euros.
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