2 December 2014, 13:22 GMT
ROME (Sputnik) – This is the second-worst debt-to-GDP ratio in the Eurozone after Greece, with 168.8 percent, but the Greek ratio has shown a positive dynamic, decreasing by 8.3 percent compared to the last quarter of 2014.
According to the Eurostat data, Italy's 3-percent increase in this crucial indicator was only outpaced by Belgium, where state indebtedness to GDP rose by 4.5-percent.
On July 14, the Italian Central Bank (ICB) declared that its government debt had increased by 83.3 billion euro ($90.3 billion) in the first five months of 2015, climbing to a record high of 2.21 trillion euro in May. The ICB linked the rising debt to a fall in the euro exchange rate, changes on the sovereign bond market and an increase in money supply.
