In January-July, the country’s public debt amounted to 138.8 billion lei (EUR1=RON4.2552), compared with RON109.7 billion at the end of 2008.
Government debt stood at 93.16% of Romanian total debt in the mentioned interval, while local authorities’ debt accounted for 6.84%.
The public debt-to-GDP ratio was calculated using an estimated GDP of RON497.3 billion this year, as agreed upon with the International Monetary Fund in August.
In 2008, the GDP stood at RON503.9 billion.
The increase in the public debt was broadly driven by a EUR1.5 billion loan installment Romania received from the European Union in July. The loan is part of a larger EUR20 billion international aid package secured from the International Monetary Fund, the EU, the World Bank and the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development.
In addition, the World Bank approved early July a first loan of EUR300 million out of a total financing program for Romania worth EUR1 billion.
End July, the public debt in Romanian lei was at 59.29% of the total debt, while euro-denominated debt stood at 31.33%.
In the first seven months, Romania’s Finance Ministry sold RON48.4 billion worth of state treasuries, of which 37.36% in six-month paper, 30.47% were three-month treasuries, while one-month treasuries accounted for 18.17% of the total debt.
One-year bills and three- and five-year bonds amounted to 6.46%, 4.08% and 3.45%, respectively, of the debt sold in January-July.
Also, Romania took RON11.8 billion loans in the analyzed period.