Italy’s public debt hits historic high

Italy’s public debt surged by nearly €5 billion ($5.6 billion) in the first five months of the year, hitting a new record in May, data published by the Bank of Italy this week revealed.

Government debt reached €2.816 trillion ($3.1 trillion) in May after passing the €2.800-trillion mark in April, figures showed. It represents a €4.8 billion ($5.3 billion) increase compared to the previous month, the regulator said.

“Another historic record! This is a big disaster for our country, given the constant rise in interest rates, leading to an increase in the burden of public debt, which the Italians pay from their taxes,” said Massimiliano Dona, President of the National Union of Italian Consumers (UNC).

Italy is the most indebted country in the Eurozone after Greece, and one of the most highly indebted nations in the world.

The level of state borrowing is the equivalent of €47,862 ($53,729) per citizen, or about €107,500 ($120,667) per family, according to the head of UNC.

“It is impossible to cut taxes while the public debt is out of control. We have to change its structure by helping low-income households and by raising windfall taxes,” Dona said.

Italy's ratio of debt to gross domestic product (GDP) reached an all-time high of around 155% during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. The Italian economy has somewhat recovered since then, but ratio was still one of the highest in the EU, at 144% in the last quarter of 2022, according to Eurostat.

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