Government debt falls to 101.6 percent of GDP in Q1 2026

Spain's general government debt, measured under the Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP) methodology, stood at 101.6 percent of GDP in the first quarter of 2026.

This marks a 1.7 percentage point decrease compared to the same period last year.

In absolute terms, the total public debt balance reached €1,740 billion, reflecting a year-on-year growth rate of 4.3 percent.

The central government subsector accounted for the largest share, with its debt balance reaching €1,602 billion in March 2026, representing 93.6 percent of GDP.

This subsector's debt grew by 4.5 percent year-on-year.

Within the central government, the State's debt amounted to €1,589 billion (92.9 percent of GDP), an increase of 4.7 percent from March 2025.

The debt of Social Security Administrations rose to €136 billion, an 8 percent share of GDP and 7.9 percent higher than a year prior, primarily due to state loans.

The consolidation of debt among public administration subsectors increased by 3.7 percent year-on-year, reaching €366 billion, or 21.4 percent of GDP.

The debt of Autonomous Communities (CCAA) reached 20.3 percent of GDP in the first quarter of 2026, growing 2.6 percent year-on-year.

While five communities remained below the 13 percent debt-to-GDP threshold, Comunidad Valenciana continued to show the highest ratio at 40.4 percent, followed by Murcia (31.1%) and Cataluña (27.8%).

Local Corporations (CCLL) debt saw a 9.5 percent year-on-year decrease, settling at 1.2 percent of GDP.

This decline was particularly notable among municipalities with over 300,000 inhabitants, whose combined debt fell by 17.2 percent.

Regarding debt instruments, long-term liabilities dominated, representing 94.8 percent of total debt, with long-term securities accounting for 85.1 percent.

Short-term instruments also saw a modest increase of 1.3 percent year-on-year.