Snatching a surplus from deficit’s jaws

Greece returned to a primary surplus in 2022, the Parliamentary Budget Office stated on Thursday in its report for the fourth quarter of 2022, based on the common European rules (European system of Accounts, or ESA) methodology, which is the only valid record after the end of enhanced surveillance.

As highlighted in the report, the primary surplus was made possible by the two tranches of around 1.3 billion euros received after the last assessments of the economy in June and December, despite the fact that the last 630-million-euro tranche was received in early 2023.

In the report it is specifically stated: “The estimate of the Parliamentary Budget Office is that the primary result of 2022 will probably close in positive territory, with the ESA methodology – i.e. after including the income from bond profits (ANFAs and SMPs) – which were not included in the program of enhanced surveillance methodology.”

The positive fiscal performance, according to the the Parliamentary Budget Office’s report, is partly thanks to the high growth rate of the economy, but mainly thanks to high inflation and its strong impact on public revenues.