Fiscal balance, sometimes also referred to as the government budget balance, is calculated as the difference between a government’s revenues (taxes and proceeds from asset sales) and its expenditures. It is often expressed as a ratio of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). If the balance is positive, the government has a surplus (it spends less than it receives). If the balance is negative, the government has a deficit (it spends more than it receives). The fiscal balance as a percentage of GDP is used as an instrument to measure a government’s ability to meet its financing needs and to ensure good management of public finances.
Fiscal Balance (% of GDP) Data
2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Afghanistan | 1.7 | -1.0 | -2.2 | -0.3 | - |
Albania | -1.6 | -1.9 | -6.7 | -4.6 | -3.7 |
Algeria | -6.8 | -9.6 | -11.9 | -7.2 | -2.9 |
Andorra | 2.7 | 2.3 | -1.1 | -1.2 | 4.9 |
Angola | 2.3 | 0.8 | -1.9 | 3.8 | 0.7 |
Antigua and Barbuda | 0.0 | -1.2 | -3.7 | -2.3 | -1.2 |
Argentina | -4.9 | -3.8 | -8.4 | -3.6 | -3.8 |
Armenia | -1.6 | -0.8 | -5.1 | -4.5 | -2.2 |
Aruba | 1.1 | 3.5 | -11.1 | -4.8 | - |
Australia | -0.5 | 0.0 | -4.3 | -6.4 | -1.4 |
Austria | 0.2 | 0.6 | -8.0 | -5.8 | -3.5 |
Azerbaijan | 5.4 | 9.0 | -6.4 | 4.1 | 6.0 |
Bahamas, The | -0.8 | 0.8 | -4.4 | -9.0 | -1.3 |
Bahrain | -11.8 | -9.0 | -17.9 | -11.0 | -6.1 |
Bangladesh | -4.1 | -5.4 | -4.8 | -3.6 | -4.1 |
Barbados | 3.4 | 6.0 | -1.0 | -0.9 | 2.5 |
Belarus | 1.8 | 0.9 | -2.9 | -1.7 | -3.9 |
Belgium | -0.9 | -2.0 | -8.9 | -5.4 | -3.5 |
Belize | -1.3 | -2.9 | -8.4 | -3.2 | -0.7 |
Benin | -1.4 | 1.1 | -2.7 | -3.5 | -3.9 |
Bhutan | -0.3 | -0.7 | -1.5 | -5.2 | -6.0 |
Bolivia | -8.1 | -7.2 | -12.7 | -9.3 | -7.1 |
Bosnia-Herz. | 1.6 | 1.4 | -4.6 | 0.6 | 0.9 |
Botswana | -5.0 | -8.5 | -10.9 | -2.4 | 0.0 |
Brazil | -7.0 | -5.8 | -13.3 | -4.3 | -4.6 |
Brunei | -3.6 | -3.7 | -15.8 | -8.2 | 2.5 |
Bulgaria | 1.7 | 2.1 | -3.8 | -4.0 | -2.9 |
Burkina Faso | -3.3 | -2.1 | -3.8 | -5.7 | - |
Burundi | -5.1 | -4.1 | -3.4 | -2.3 | -9.5 |
Cabo Verde | -0.1 | 0.6 | -6.5 | -5.3 | - |
Cambodia | 0.7 | 3.0 | -3.4 | -7.1 | -0.9 |
Cameroon | -2.4 | -3.2 | -3.2 | -3.0 | -1.1 |
Canada | 0.4 | 0.0 | -10.9 | -2.9 | 0.1 |
CdI | -2.9 | -2.2 | -5.4 | -4.9 | -6.8 |
Central African Republic | -0.6 | 1.8 | -3.1 | -5.7 | - |
Chad | 3.0 | 0.8 | 2.7 | -0.8 | - |
Chile | -1.7 | -2.9 | -7.3 | -7.7 | 1.1 |
China | -4.1 | -4.9 | -6.2 | -3.8 | -4.7 |
Colombia | -3.1 | -2.5 | -7.8 | -7.0 | -5.3 |
Comoros | -1.3 | -4.1 | -0.3 | -2.5 | - |
Congo | -0.7 | -2.2 | -3.0 | -1.7 | -0.4 |
Costa Rica | -5.7 | -6.7 | -8.0 | -5.0 | -2.5 |
Croatia | -0.1 | 0.2 | -7.3 | -2.5 | 0.1 |
Cuba | -8.1 | -6.2 | -17.7 | -11.7 | -11.1 |
Cyprus | -3.6 | 0.9 | -5.7 | -1.9 | 2.4 |
Czech Republic | 0.9 | 0.3 | -5.8 | -5.1 | -3.2 |
Denmark | 0.8 | 4.2 | 0.4 | 4.1 | 3.4 |
Djibouti | -1.6 | 0.4 | -1.7 | -2.6 | -0.7 |
Dominica | -16.7 | -6.2 | -5.6 | -6.2 | -0.4 |
Dominican Republic | -2.3 | -2.3 | -7.6 | -2.5 | -2.7 |
DR Congo | -1.1 | -2.4 | -3.3 | -2.0 | -0.8 |
Ecuador | -2.8 | -3.5 | -7.1 | -1.6 | 0.0 |
Egypt | -9.1 | -7.6 | -7.5 | -7.1 | -6.2 |
El Salvador | -2.5 | -2.9 | -10.3 | -5.8 | -2.8 |
Equatorial Guinea | 1.2 | 2.7 | -0.4 | 3.7 | - |
Eritrea | 6.7 | 4.5 | - | - | - |
Estonia | -0.6 | 0.1 | -5.4 | -2.5 | -1.0 |
Ethiopia | -2.5 | -2.8 | -2.8 | -4.2 | - |
Euro Area | -0.4 | -0.6 | -7.1 | -5.2 | -3.6 |
Fiji | -1.8 | -0.9 | -4.8 | -9.7 | -8.5 |
Finland | -0.9 | -0.9 | -5.6 | -2.8 | -0.8 |
France | -2.3 | -3.1 | -9.0 | -6.5 | -4.8 |
Gabon | 2.2 | 4.4 | 1.2 | 0.9 | - |
Gambia, The | -2.7 | 0.6 | 1.0 | -1.6 | -2.7 |
Georgia | -0.8 | -1.8 | -9.3 | -6.0 | -2.6 |
Germany | 1.9 | 1.5 | -4.3 | -3.6 | -2.5 |
Ghana | -6.8 | -7.5 | -17.4 | -12.0 | -11.2 |
Greece | 0.9 | 0.9 | -9.7 | -7.0 | -2.4 |
Grenada | 6.6 | 6.8 | -2.6 | 2.1 | 2.6 |
Guatemala | -1.9 | -2.2 | -4.9 | -1.2 | -1.7 |
Guinea | -0.3 | 0.2 | -2.4 | -1.2 | - |
Guinea-Bissau | -4.1 | -2.8 | -8.1 | -4.3 | -4.5 |
Guyana | -1.9 | -2.0 | -7.3 | -6.8 | - |
Haiti | -1.1 | -2.0 | -2.5 | -2.6 | -2.1 |
Honduras | -2.1 | -2.5 | -7.0 | -5.1 | -1.3 |
Hong Kong | 2.4 | -0.4 | -8.7 | 1.0 | -4.4 |
Hungary | -2.1 | -2.0 | -7.6 | -7.2 | -6.2 |
Iceland | 1.0 | -1.6 | -8.9 | -8.5 | -4.0 |
India | -3.4 | -4.6 | -9.2 | -6.7 | -6.4 |
Indonesia | -1.8 | -2.2 | -6.1 | -4.6 | -2.4 |
Iran | -1.6 | -4.5 | -5.8 | -4.2 | -4.1 |
Iraq | 7.8 | 0.8 | -12.9 | -0.4 | 7.6 |
Ireland | 0.1 | 0.5 | -5.0 | -1.5 | 1.7 |
Israel | -2.9 | -3.7 | -11.3 | -4.3 | 0.6 |
Italy | -2.2 | -1.5 | -9.6 | -8.8 | -8.0 |
Jamaica | 1.2 | 0.9 | -3.1 | 0.9 | 0.3 |
Japan | -2.5 | -3.0 | -9.1 | -6.2 | - |
Jordan | -2.4 | -3.3 | -7.0 | -6.1 | -4.5 |
Kazakhstan | -1.3 | -1.8 | -4.0 | -3.0 | -2.1 |
Kenya | -6.9 | -7.4 | -8.1 | -7.2 | -5.8 |
Kiribati | 6.4 | 13.7 | 4.7 | -11.0 | - |
Korea | 1.6 | -0.6 | -3.7 | -1.5 | -3.0 |
Kosovo | -2.6 | -2.7 | -7.5 | -0.9 | -0.3 |
Kuwait | -3.1 | -9.5 | -33.2 | -7.0 | 11.5 |
Kyrgyzstan | -0.6 | -0.1 | -3.1 | -0.7 | -0.3 |
Laos | -4.7 | -3.3 | -5.6 | -1.3 | -1.6 |
Latvia | -0.7 | -0.5 | -4.5 | -7.2 | -4.6 |
Lebanon | -11.4 | -11.0 | -3.5 | 0.8 | - |
Lesotho | -3.3 | -4.2 | 1.5 | -3.8 | -6.2 |
Liberia | -3.9 | -3.9 | -2.7 | -1.6 | - |
Libya | 9.4 | 11.9 | -22.3 | 14.8 | 23.2 |
Lithuania | 0.5 | 0.5 | -6.5 | -1.1 | -0.7 |
Luxembourg | 3.0 | 2.2 | -3.4 | 0.6 | -0.3 |
Macao | 13.3 | 14.4 | -21.3 | - | - |
Madagascar | -0.6 | -0.7 | -3.2 | -2.0 | -5.9 |
Malawi | -1.6 | -1.5 | -5.0 | -4.6 | -4.6 |
Malaysia | -3.7 | -3.4 | -6.2 | -6.4 | -5.6 |
Maldives | -3.6 | -5.1 | -20.9 | -11.3 | -8.8 |
Mali | -3.9 | -0.7 | -4.2 | -3.5 | -3.3 |
Malta | 2.0 | 0.5 | -9.6 | -7.5 | -5.7 |
Marshall Islands | 2.9 | -1.6 | 2.8 | 0.4 | 0.9 |
Mauritania | 4.4 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 3.2 | - |
Mauritius | 0.3 | -5.4 | -7.8 | -1.6 | -0.8 |
Mexico | -2.0 | -1.6 | -2.8 | -2.8 | -3.2 |
Micronesia, Federated States of | 24.5 | 18.6 | 6.3 | 4.7 | - |
Moldova | -0.9 | -1.5 | -5.3 | -2.6 | -3.2 |
Mongolia | 2.9 | 1.0 | -9.2 | -3.0 | 0.7 |
Montenegro | -3.6 | -2.9 | -10.2 | -2.0 | -4.4 |
Morocco | -3.4 | -3.6 | -7.1 | -6.0 | -5.2 |
Mozambique | -5.6 | 1.7 | -5.4 | -3.6 | -5.0 |
Myanmar | -3.4 | -3.9 | -5.6 | -11.0 | -5.1 |
Namibia | -1.9 | -1.8 | -3.9 | -4.5 | -2.1 |
Nauru | 32.2 | 28.3 | 32.7 | 40.1 | 26.0 |
Nepal | -5.4 | -4.5 | -4.7 | -3.2 | -2.3 |
Netherlands | 1.5 | 1.8 | -3.7 | -2.2 | -0.1 |
New Zealand | 1.9 | 2.4 | -7.3 | -1.3 | -2.7 |
Nicaragua | -4.0 | -1.7 | -2.6 | -1.5 | 0.6 |
Niger | -2.1 | -2.6 | -3.8 | -4.8 | - |
Nigeria | -4.3 | -4.7 | -5.6 | -6.0 | -5.6 |
North Macedonia | -1.8 | -2.0 | -8.0 | -5.3 | -4.4 |
Norway | 7.8 | 6.5 | -2.6 | 10.3 | 25.6 |
Oman | -7.5 | -7.8 | -17.2 | -3.6 | 2.8 |
Pakistan | -5.8 | -7.9 | -7.1 | -6.1 | -7.9 |
Palau | 6.2 | -1.7 | -16.1 | -10.3 | -3.6 |
Panama | -3.1 | -3.3 | -10.0 | -6.4 | -3.9 |
Papua New Guinea | -0.2 | -1.9 | -6.2 | -4.4 | -3.0 |
Paraguay | -1.3 | -2.8 | -6.1 | -3.6 | -2.9 |
Peru | -2.3 | -1.6 | -8.9 | -2.5 | -1.7 |
Philippines | -3.1 | -3.4 | -7.6 | -8.6 | -7.3 |
Poland | -0.2 | -0.7 | -6.9 | -1.8 | -3.7 |
Portugal | -0.3 | 0.1 | -5.8 | -2.9 | -0.3 |
Qatar | 2.3 | 1.1 | -2.0 | 0.2 | 10.3 |
Romania | -2.8 | -4.3 | -9.3 | -7.2 | -6.3 |
Russia | 2.6 | 1.8 | -3.8 | 0.4 | -2.1 |
Rwanda | -2.6 | -5.1 | -9.5 | -7.0 | -5.8 |
Saint Kitts and Nevis | 2.5 | 0.5 | -1.7 | 6.8 | -2.0 |
Saint Lucia | 1.9 | -0.5 | -7.7 | -2.2 | 1.5 |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 1.6 | -0.2 | -2.9 | -5.0 | -7.2 |
Samoa | 0.1 | 1.5 | 5.4 | 1.7 | 5.4 |
San Marino | -1.2 | 0.2 | -36.6 | -14.5 | 0.9 |
Sao Tome and Principe | -1.6 | 0.7 | 3.3 | - | - |
Saudi Arabia | -5.5 | -4.2 | -10.7 | -2.2 | 2.5 |
Senegal | -3.7 | -3.9 | -6.4 | -6.3 | -6.6 |
Serbia | 0.6 | -0.2 | -8.0 | -4.1 | -3.2 |
Seychelles | 2.3 | 3.3 | -12.3 | -2.5 | - |
Sierra Leone | -2.8 | -0.4 | -2.7 | -4.5 | -7.3 |
Singapore | 0.7 | 0.2 | -10.7 | 0.2 | -0.1 |
Slovakia | -1.0 | -1.2 | -5.4 | -5.2 | -2.0 |
Slovenia | 0.7 | 0.7 | -7.6 | -4.6 | -3.0 |
Solomon Islands | 1.6 | -1.4 | -2.2 | -3.4 | -3.8 |
South Africa | -4.3 | -6.0 | -9.8 | -5.1 | -4.6 |
South Sudan | -0.2 | 1.4 | -4.6 | -9.1 | 5.4 |
Spain | -2.6 | -3.1 | -10.1 | -6.7 | -4.7 |
Sri Lanka | -5.0 | -7.5 | -12.2 | -11.7 | -10.2 |
Sudan | -7.7 | -10.6 | -5.9 | -0.2 | -2.3 |
Suriname | -2.5 | -17.5 | -8.4 | -0.6 | - |
Swaziland | -8.2 | -4.6 | -2.4 | -2.7 | -2.3 |
Sweden | 0.8 | 0.5 | -2.8 | 0.0 | 1.1 |
Switzerland | 1.3 | 1.3 | -3.0 | -0.3 | 0.9 |
Taiwan | 0.0 | 0.1 | -1.0 | -0.2 | 0.2 |
Tajikistan | -2.7 | -2.1 | -4.3 | -0.7 | -0.2 |
Tanzania | -1.9 | -2.0 | -2.5 | -3.4 | - |
Thailand | -2.5 | -1.9 | -6.8 | -5.5 | -2.7 |
Timor-Leste | -26.6 | -25.3 | -18.9 | -19.3 | -19.8 |
Togo | 1.2 | 3.8 | -4.7 | -2.5 | -5.9 |
Tonga | 3.7 | 3.9 | 6.1 | -0.6 | - |
Trinidad and Tobago | -5.9 | -3.8 | -12.2 | -8.5 | 0.3 |
Tunisia | -4.5 | -3.3 | -9.7 | -7.9 | -7.7 |
Turkey | -1.9 | -2.9 | -3.4 | -2.8 | -0.9 |
Turkmenistan | -0.2 | -0.3 | -0.1 | 0.4 | 2.4 |
Tuvalu | 28.4 | -8.1 | 8.3 | -16.4 | 2.9 |
UAE | 3.8 | 2.6 | -2.5 | 4.0 | 9.9 |
Uganda | -3.0 | -4.8 | -7.5 | -7.5 | -5.8 |
Ukraine | -1.9 | -2.2 | -5.3 | -3.4 | -16.1 |
United Kingdom | -2.3 | -2.5 | -13.1 | -7.9 | -4.7 |
United States | -3.8 | -4.6 | -14.7 | -12.1 | -5.4 |
Uruguay | -2.7 | -3.2 | -5.2 | -3.5 | -3.2 |
Uzbekistan | 2.0 | -0.3 | -3.3 | -4.6 | -4.2 |
Vanuatu | 7.2 | 3.7 | -1.1 | - | - |
Venezuela | -30.3 | -10.0 | -5.0 | -4.6 | -6.0 |
Vietnam | -1.0 | -0.4 | -2.9 | -1.4 | 0.3 |
Yemen | -7.8 | -5.9 | -4.5 | -0.9 | -2.6 |
Zambia | -8.3 | -9.4 | -13.8 | -8.1 | -7.7 |
Zimbabwe | -5.4 | -0.9 | 0.8 | -2.2 | -2.0 |