United States Department of State

Greece United States Department of State

Greece continues to present a challenging climate for investment, both foreign and domestic. However, numerous structural reforms, undertaken as part of the country's international bailout program, aim to welcome and facilitate foreign investment. The country has undergone a rapid fiscal consolidation, with broad and deep cuts to public expenditures and significant increases in tax rates and enforcement. In 2014, excluding debt service payments, the government budget recorded a surplus of EUR 630 million, marginally higher than the primary surplus of EUR 603 million achieved in 2013. Including debt payments, the government ran a fiscal deficit of EUR 6.3 billion in 2014, lower than the 2013 deficit of EUR 22.5 billion. Overall, as a percentage of GDP, the fiscal deficit has rapidly declined from -9.6 % in 2011 to -3.5% in 2014. The debt/GDP ratio, increased slightly to 177.7% in 2014, compared to 174.9% in 2013, as a result both of Greece's bailout loans adding to the debt stock and the country's sharply contracted GDP.