Debt Above €10.7 Billion (Near 59% of GDP) and New €92 Million Borrowing on October 20: What Is Certain and What the Opposition Claims
On October 16 SDSM announced that on October 20 the state borrows €92 million through government securities; public debt is above €10.7 billion, and forecasts put it above 60% of GDP.
The opposition SDSM claims in a statement on October 16 that on October 20 the state will borrow €92 million through government securities. The release names no buyers and no official purpose for the money, and the text we checked contains no response from the Government. SDSM says the borrowing is used to cover budget holes, that a second rebalance is being prepared and a third announced, and that “borrowing is not development, borrowing is a bill for future generations.”
The official figures, according to Telma on October 11: public debt is above €10.7 billion, almost 59% of GDP, and Finance Ministry documents project it will exceed 60% and keep rising at the same pace until 2028. The deficit is 4.1% of GDP, above the Government’s own limit. The second rebalance cut revenues and expenditures by €86 million each, and the minister says debt and deficit targets will not change. Through a mini eurobond the state borrowed €150 million at a 5.25% interest rate, which the minister called planned.
Individual claims are also disputed. SDSM says half of the debt since independence was incurred in the last two years, about four billion euros, but that does not match the total debt of €10.7 billion and is not independently confirmed. On the other side, the Government claimed in May that public debt fell by 1.5 percentage points since it took office, while the €260 million law, according to SDSM, takes debt above €11 billion. Former Finance Minister Kiril Minovski warned that debt above 60% of GDP does not prevent borrowing but increases pressure on the budget, and that a borrowing cost above growth means the economy is not creating enough value. That is why it is worth waiting for the official figure on October 20.
MKNews Hub · Macedonia · October 17, 2026
