Greek official public gap hits 9.1 percent of GDP

ATHENS - Agence France-Presse

The Greek Parliament is seen behind the country’s flag in central Athens. AP photo

Greece’s public deficit reached an estimated 9.1 percent of gross domestic product last year, more than three times the EU limit, figures released on Monday by the national statistics authority showed.

Under terms of the Maastricht Treaty, eurozone countries are supposed to run public deficits of no more than 3 percent of GDP.

The national debt grew meanwhile to 355.6 billion euros ($468.7 billion), the Greek Statistics Authority said, equivalent to 165.3 percent of GDP, whereas the EU limit is 60 percent of output.