The per capita foreign debt was nevertheless a high USD5,800, or nearly USD500 more than at the end of last year, analysts at the Croatian Chamber of the Economy said last week in a report on economic trends.
According to figures from the Croatian National Bank, the country's overall foreign debt amounted to USD25.7 billion at the end of July, which was 2.18 billion more than at the end of 2003; 35.5 per cent accounted for the government debt, 32 per cent for the debt of the banking sector and 25.3 per cent for the debt of the business sector.
Although all the sectors recorded a slower foreign debt growth rate, the highest absolute debt growth was registered by the banks and the government as a result of taking fresh loans and issuing international bonds.
According to the central bank, in the first seven months of this year the banks' foreign debt increased by USD891.3 million, reaching USD8.2 billion at the end of July. The government foreign debt increased by USD688.5 million to reach USD9.1 billion, while the business sector debt amounted to USD6.5 billion, which was a rise of USD536.4 million from the end of last year.