(ANSA) - ZAGREB - In 2013 the public deficit was in Croatia 4.9% of GDP (2.13 billion euro), whereas public debt has skyrocketed, touching 67.1% of Croatian GDP, that is 29 billion euros. These data, collected by the Croatian Bureau of Statistics (DZS) and released today, have been calculated for the first time in accordance with the European methodology. The calculation done by the DZS will be a benchmark for further EC's controls (the EC opened an excessive deficit procedure for Croatia in February).

The greatest concern is the strong growth of debt during the years of economic crisis. In 2010, debt was 45% of GDP, at the end of 2012 it was 56%, and 67% in December 2013, with an increase of eleven points in two years.

The debt has risen as a result of new issues of government bonds, used to cover the losses in public health and placed in the international market at an interest rate which was much higher than the past, because of the almost ''junk'' credit rating the country has been given by international agencies.

In 2013, revenue totalled 17.7 billion and expenses 19.8 billion, thus reducing the deficit by 0.7% over the previous year. Just as public debt is expected to grow again this year, the deficit is expected to continue to decline, due to some measures that will be presented in Brussels in the coming days (ANSA).