Securities become main financial instrument in most EU states in 2013: Eurostat

Around 80 percent of government debt was financed by issuing securities in the European Union (EU) in 2013, including bills, bonds, etc., according to a report released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU on Thursday.

For the rest, 16 percent was financed by loans and 4 percent by currency and deposits.

This report, based on a survey of the structure of government debt, provided information on general government debt by criteria of subsector, financial instrument, debt holder, maturity, currency of issuance, as well as government guarantees and other features.

In 2013, Malta, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Slovenia, Slovakia, France and Italy registered the highest proportions of debt financed by securities.

The use of loans was highest in Estonia, Greece, Cyprus and Latvia.

Generally, the use of currency and deposits was very low, except in Ireland, the United Kingdom and Italy.

A significant difference existed among member states in which sector held the government debt.

In 2013, the share of public debt held by the non-resident sector was highest in Finland, Latvia, Austria, Lithuania, Slovenia and Portugal.

The largest shares of debt held by the resident financial sector were observed in Luxembourg, Romania and Croatia.