PARIS: French public debt soared last year to its highest levels since shortly after World War II due to the coronavirus pandemic and ensuing economic crisis, the statistics office said today.
France’s public debt in 2020 was equal to 115.7% of annual GDP and the budget deficit amounted to 9.2% of GDP, “the highest level since 1949”, statistics office Insee said.
In 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic erupted, French government debt was 97.6% of GDP and the budget deficit 3.1%.
The government had expected even worse figures, with a deficit of 11.3% and debt of around 120%.
The Covid-19 pandemic has battered the French economy which contracted 8.2% in 2020, forcing the government to provide massive support to business to avoid bankruptcies and mass job cuts.