The Bank of Portugal published updated statistics on non-financial sector indebtedness through December 2024, showing total debt of general government, corporates and households rose by EUR 17.0 billion in 2024 to EUR 814.1 billion. The increase was concentrated in the public sector (+EUR 11.6 billion), while private sector debt rose by EUR 5.4 billion, and the debt-to-GDP ratio fell as GDP growth outpaced the nominal rise in debt. At end-2024, EUR 454.6 billion related to the private sector (private non-financial corporations and households) and EUR 359.4 billion to the public sector (general government and public corporations). Public sector borrowing increased mainly vis-à-vis non-residents (+EUR 10.6 billion) via mostly long-term debt securities and vis-à-vis public administrations (+EUR 3.2 billion), partially offset by a EUR 2.2 billion decline in borrowing from the financial sector and households. Private sector debt growth was driven by higher household borrowing from the financial sector (+EUR 4.7 billion), largely for housing credit, while private corporate debt was broadly stable as higher borrowing from the rest of the world and the financial sector was offset by reduced borrowing from other resident sectors. The non-financial sector debt ratio fell 11.4 percentage points to 286.6% of GDP, with public debt down to 126.6% and private debt down to 160.1%; between end-2023 and end-2024, private corporate debt grew 1.2% and household debt increased 3.8%. The next update is scheduled for 24 March 2025.

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