The Ministry of Finances has announced that its official estimate of the primary surplus during the first half of 2014 is about 1.797 billion euros. According to the Ministry’s data, during the first half of 2013, the general government had a 1.0 billion euro primary deficit.
However, these divs exclude the outstanding debt payments, from the equation; if included the primary surplus for 2014 amounts to 2.2 billion euros and 590 million euros in 2013.
The Deputy Minister of Finances Christos Staikouras sated that the “sustainable primary surpluses […] demonstrate that the country’s public finances are stabilizing” and that the social dividend benefit of 450 million euros was shared amongst 690,000 households.
