"The euro area's general government deficit in 2014 came in slightly lower than projected in our winter forecast from February, at 2.4% of GDP, compared to 2.6% of GDP assumed in the 2015 winter forecast," the official said, adding that this was half a percentage point lower than in 2013.
On Tuesday, the EU statistics agency Eurostat published a report that showed 12 EU countries booked a higher deficit than the mandated 3 percent. These included Cyprus, Spain and Britain, while Greece was surprisingly not on the list.
The EU-wide government deficit was down to 2.9 percent of GDP in 2014, compared to the 3-percent winter forecast, the Commission's spokesperson told Sputnik. The source stressed this was the first time since 2008 that the European Union logged a lower deficit than it is formally allowed.
The Commission is now working on a spring forecast, to be published in early May, that will incorporate the data for 2014.
