Last year, the first general government surplus since 2002 was achieved, public debt fell to 78 percent

The general government surplus in Croatia in 2017 amounted to 2.7 billion kuna, marking the first surplus since these data have been tracked, while the share of public debt in gross domestic product (GDP) fell to 78 percent, the lowest level since 2012, according to data from the Croatian Bureau of Statistics (DZS).

The report on the excessive budget deficit procedure and the level of general government debt, published on Friday, shows that in 2017, the consolidated general government surplus amounted to 2.75 billion kuna, or 0.8 percent of GDP, while a deficit of 3.2 billion kuna, or 0.9 percent of GDP, was recorded the previous year.

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This is the first general government surplus since 2002, when these data have been tracked.

A significant impact on the surplus amount in 2017 was the renewed decline in the state budget balance compared to the previous year, from 3.389 billion kuna to 2.29 billion, the DZS report states.

Moreover, the greatest impact on achieving the surplus compared to previous years was the significant improvement in the results of off-budget users and public enterprises, as well as an increase in tax revenues, it is noted.

It is also emphasized that last year, taxes on production and imports collected amounted to 71.6 billion kuna, which is 5.4 percent more than a year earlier.

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The report notes a decline in investments, which amounted to 9.8 billion kuna last year, a decrease of 13.1 percent compared to 2016.

Additionally, the DZS states that the generation of the surplus was influenced by a reduction in interest expenses. Last year, these expenses amounted to 9.76 billion kuna, which is 9.7 percent less than a year earlier.

The report also states that last year there was a further increase in the primary surplus of the general government, meaning that there was a surplus of current revenues over current expenditures, amounting to 12.5 billion kuna or 3.7 percent of GDP.

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The share of public debt in GDP is the lowest since 2012.

The DZS also reported that at the end of 2017, Croatian public debt amounted to 283.3 billion kuna, with the share of that debt in GDP falling to 78 percent, which is its lowest level since 2012, when it was 69.4 percent of GDP.

However, the debt of 283.3 billion kuna is higher by 1.6 billion kuna or 0.6 percent compared to the end of 2016.

Nevertheless, as the economy grew faster last year, by 2.8 percent compared to 2016, the share of public debt in GDP also fell, by 2.6 percentage points compared to the end of 2016, when it was 80.6 percent of GDP.