Bank of Italy publishes May edition of The Italian economy in brief with Q1 GDP up 0.2% and April inflation at 2.9%

The Bank of Italy has published the May issue of The Italian economy in brief, its Statistics series update on the Italian economy and financial system. The latest data in the bulletin show gross domestic product rising by 0.2% quarter on quarter in the first quarter of 2026, preliminary harmonized consumer price inflation increasing to 2.9% in April from 1.6% in March, and the Bank of Italy's April baseline projections for 2026 at 0.5% growth and 2.6% inflation. The release is structured across seven areas covering real activity, prices, foreign transactions, household and corporate financial conditions, credit and banks, public finances, and macroeconomic projections. Among the latest figures, the current account posted a EUR 1.8 billion surplus in January-February 2026, the official estimates cited in the bulletin put the 2026 general government deficit at 2.9% of GDP and gross public debt at 138.6% of GDP, and weighted-average banking system ratios at December 2025 stood at 15.69% for the Common Equity Tier 1 ratio, 19.56% for the total capital ratio, 179.60% for the liquidity coverage ratio and 132.82% for the net stable funding ratio. The bulletin also notes that, from April 2025, the methodology for the liquidity coverage ratio and net stable funding ratio was aligned with other official Bank of Italy publications, with data published from April 2024 to March 2025 revised accordingly.