State repays debts but its primary deficit grew in May
The state repaid expired debts of 3.4 billion euros up to the end of June this year, even though the State General Accounting Office had approved ministry applications for the payment of 4.6 billion euros over the same period.
Alternate Finance Minister Christos Staikouras stated on Wednesday that the government’s target is for the state “to respond to its obligations and at the same time strengthen the cash flow in the real economy.”
This, however, has taken a toll on budget figures: According to data released on Wednesday by the General Accounting Office, the primary deficit of the general government in the year’s first five months amounted to 829 million euros, from 335 million at end-April.
Meanwhile the data that Staikouras forwarded to Parliament on Wednesday showed that at end-May the central government debt amounted to 317.8 billion euros, out of which some 205 billion euros concerned the debt from the country’s bailout program.
