Excessive Deficit Procedure 2023
Public finances turned from surplus to deficit
Statistical news from Statistics Sweden 2024-03-28 8.00
In 2023, general government net lending/net borrowing amounted to a deficit of SEK 40 billion, which corresponds to 0,6 percent of GDP. Compared to the previous year, public finances deteriorated by over SEK 110 billion. The consolidated gross debt amounted to SEK 1 966 billion, 31.2 percent of GDP. Therefore, Sweden meets the EU convergence requirements.
After the Covid-19 pandemic, general government finances stabilized due to a quick recovery in the Swedish economy. In 2022, the surplus was SEK 71 billion for general government, but turned to a deficit last year caused by an increase of expenditures due to high inflation rate. The deficit corresponded to 0.6 percent of GDP.
- First the pandemic, followed by a recovery in the economy. Then high inflation rate and a turn down in the economy last year, has led to major fluctuations for public finances. But Sweden meets the EU convergence requirements, says Camilla Gylfe, statistician at Statistics Sweden.
All government subsectors except social security funds reported deficit during the last year. All subsectors reported a worsening of net lending/net borrowing compared to the previous year.
General government gross debt decreased
The general government consolidated gross debt decreased by SEK 14 billion between 2022 and 2023. During the same period, GDP in current prices increased by SEK 323 billion. Consequently, the consolidated gross debt decreased from 33,2 to 31,2 percent of GDP. Which is by good margin below the 60 percent of GDP required for the EU convergence requirement.
Consolidated gross debt for the central government decreased by SEK 88 billion 2023 compared to previous year and amounted to SEK 1 183 billion at the end of 2023. One explanation was the National Central Bank repayment of a loan at the Swedish National Debt Office. Debt for local governments increased by SEK 67 billion. The debt instrument that increased the most was long term loans. Also, social security funds' consolidated gross debt increased significantly.
The consolidated gross debt will now be published in Statistical Database, SSD quarterly.
Revisions
Years from 2020 onwards have been revised. Mainly due to new taxes and other updated data sources. None of the revisions changed the general summary of public finances or caused the convergence criteria not to be met.
The figures reported will be audited by Eurostat and may be revised during this process. In this event, revised estimates will be published on April 22 by both Statistics Sweden and Eurostat.
| SEK billions | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP | 5 038.5 | 5 486.6 | 5 971.6 | 6 294.7 |
| Net lending/borrowing | ‑142.1 | 0.2 | 70.6 | ‑40.4 |
| Percentage of GDP (%) | ‑2.8 | 0.0 | 1.2 | ‑0.6 |
| Gross debt | 2 024.1 | 2 012.9 | 1 979.7 | 1 965.9 |
| Percentage of GDP (%) | 40.2 | 36.7 | 33.2 | 31.2 |
Definitions and explanations
According to the EU convergence requirements, the government deficit cannot be higher than 3 percent of GDP and gross debt is not allowed to be more than 60 percent of GDP.
Calculations of convergence requirements are somewhat different from the ordinary compilations in the financial accounts. For example, the gross debt is calculated at nominal value which is the amount that must be paid on maturity. In the financial accounts, gross debt is calculated at market value. Also, the gross debt comprises only certain financial instruments.
Further information about the statistics is available on Statistics Sweden’s website on www.scb.se/nr0108-en
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On 2024-09-30 at 08:00.
Feel free to use the facts from this statistical news but remember to state Source: Statistics Sweden.