In 2024, Greece recorded a central government fiscal surplus of 369 million euros, outperforming the budget’s target of a 3.6 billion euro deficit. In terms of primary balance, Greece posted an 8.7 billion euro primary surplus on a modified cash basis—nearly double the budget target of €4.6 billion. Higher-than-expected revenues were primarily driven by intensified efforts to combat tax evasion—bringing in nearly 2 billion euros. Maintaining fiscal stability is central to our strategy for sustainable growth.
Building on this strong fiscal overperformance, Greece also recorded the largest reduction in the public debt-to-GDP ratio among all EU countries in Q3 2024 compared to Q3 2023, according to the latest Eurostat data. The ratio dropped by 10 percentage points, bringing it down to 158.2% of GDP.
This positive trajectory was also acknowledged in the IMF’s Staff Concluding Statement of the 2025 Article IV Consultation Mission, which confirmed Greece’s continued improvement in public finances, the firm downward trend of the debt-to-GDP ratio, and strong progress in reducing tax evasion, within the context of a favourable economic outlook and sustained GDP expansion.
Further progress was also seen in the labor market. According to ELSTAT data, Greece’s unemployment rate dropped to 9.4% in December, the lowest since May 2009. On an annual basis, the average unemployment rate for 2024 stood at 10.0%, down 1.1 percentage points year-on-year, while employment grew by 1.8% compared to 2023.
Turning to bank deposits, private non-financial deposits continued to grow in December, with inflows reaching 5.43 billion euros—partly due to seasonal factors—up from 2 billion euros in November. Over the last 12 months, the private non-financial deposit inflows have reached 8.37 billion with 39.5% of the total stemming from households. As a result, the total deposit balance rebounded to €197.39 billion by the end of the year, marking its highest level since January 2011.
Bank credit to the private sector recorded net additions (for the 5th consecutive month) of +3.05 billion in December 2024. In the 12-month period, the net lending flow remained positive with net loan additions amounting to +10.51 billion (compared to +4.17 billion in 2023).
Furthermore, the Athens Stock Exchange General Index recorded gains of +13.7% in 2024, with the December performance at +5.5%. The Bank index posted gains of +21.1% and +11.9% respectively.
