France, second highest public spendings in the euro area: where do the differences with the others come from?

In 2024, France had the second largest public spending in the euro area (after Finland), at 57.1% of GDP, after 56.9% in 2023 and compared to 55.3% in 2019, before the measures taken during the pandemic. Between 2014 and 2023, France was at the top of the ranking. However, the gap with Germany and Italy has been narrowing over the past 10 years, although this tightening mainly reflects an increase in the share of public spending in the GDP of these countries. According to the latest data published by Eurostat (available only until 2023), the gap in public spending between France and the other major euro area countries comes mainly from spending on social security and health, Notably, the weight of pension spending in France was the fourth highest in the euro area in 2023, at 13.1% of GDP, after Finland, Italy and Austria. This share is 2.4 points of GDP higher than the euro area average and 3.6 points of GDP higher than that of Germany. Still, some differences must be qualified, as they may reflect differences in the scope of public spending between countries, different demographic structures or geopolitical choices, particularly in terms of defense spending.