Reuters
JERUSALEM, Jan 19 (Reuters) – Israel’s public debt slipped to 70.3% of gross domestic product in 2021 from 71.7% in 2020, the Finance Ministry said on Wednesday in a preliminary estimate of its debt ratio.
Public debt figures include debt of municipalities. Excluding them, the level of government debt to GDP — viewed as a key indicator of financial strength — fell to 68.5% last year from 70.2%.
Prior to 2020, when state spending had spiked to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, the debt to GDP ratio had gradually declined to a low of 59.5% in 2019.
The ministry cited economic growth of 6.7% in 2021 and a budget deficit that fell to 4.5% of GDP last year from 11.4% the prior year for the decrease in Israel’s debt burden.
“It is important to return to a path of a reduction in the debt-to-GDP ratio in the coming years, in order to maintain fiscal flexibility and support the country’s credit rating,” said Accountant General Yali Rothenberg.
Reporting by Steven Scheer Editing by Ari Rabinovitch
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