2022
1.This morning, the Council of Ministers adopted the French Budget Bill for 2022. The total financing requirement will stand at €292.7bn, mainly consisting of €143.4bn to cover the deficit to be financed and €149.8 to redeem medium- and long-term debt maturing in 2022. Absorbing a part of SNCF Réseau debt will also increase the government’s 2022 debt redemptions by €3.1bn.
2.The financing requirement in 2022 will be met by (i) the medium- and long-term government debt issuance programme, net of buybacks, worth €260.0bn (ii) a €22.3bn drawdown of the Treasury’s account (iii) an increase in outstanding short-term government securities (BTFs) for €5.0bn (iv) €1.9bn of covid debt redemption from la Caisse de la dette publique (v) and other cash resources of €3.5bn, assuming issue premiums net of discounts worth €3.0bn.
3.State debt service is expected to stand at €38.4bn, including €0.8bn in interest charges connected with the partial absorption of SNCF Réseau debt.
4.The net year-on-year increase in the nominal value of negotiable State debt with maturities of one year or more will be capped at €113.7bn.
5.The detailed medium- and long-term financing programme for 2022 will be released in December 2021.
2021
6.Since the beginning of 2021, France has benefitted from very favourable financing conditions. The weighted average yield on medium- and long-term debt securities stood at -0.06% for the first three quarters of the year, compared to a historic low of -0.13% in 2020, a rate of 0.11% in 2019 and an average of 1.52% from 2009 to 2018.
7.The deficit to be financed in 2021 has been revised downwards to €197.6bn, compared to the amount of €220.1bn provided for in the 2021 Revised Budget Act (LFR) which was adopted in July 2021.
8.The drawdown of the Treasury’s account stood at €32.8bn, decreasing by €15.6bn from the amount provided in the 2021 LFR.
9.The “other cash resources” item, including the recording of net treasury premiums, has been revised upwards to €11.8bn, compared to €6.5bn provided for in the 2021 LFR.
10.Outstanding short-term government securities will increase by €5.0bn, a lower amount than the €19.5bn expected in the 2021 Supplementary Budget Act.
11.For 2021, issuance of medium- and long-term debt, net of buybacks, will remain flat at €260.0bn.
12.State debt service is expected to stand at €38.4bn, versus €36.8bn in the initial Budget Act, as a result of a rise in inflation which increases the service related to securities indexed to inflation.
