Romania's total external debt, public and private, increased in the first seven months of 2022 by EUR 5.8 bln, out of which more than half (over EUR 3 bln) was added in July alone.

Notably, the rise in the country's external debt was slightly higher than the foreign direct investments (FDI, EUR 5.5 bln) and covered slightly over one-third of the current account (CA) deficit of EUR 14.9 bln for the period.

Romania's external debt reached EUR 140.4 bln (53.7% of GDP) at the end of July, of which public debt amounted to EUR 57.1 bln (-EUR 1.6 bln YTD), according to the data published by the National Bank of Romania (BNR) on September 13.

Just like the public debt, Romania's external debt has diluted when compared to GDP, as a result of global inflation, to 53.7% at the end of July from 58.8% at the end of 2021. The ratio was, however, only 47.5% at the end of 2019, before the Government heavily borrowed during the Covid-19 crisis.

iulian@romania-insider.com

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