Low interest rates: citizens suffer – federal government saves 228 billion euros

Berlin It was a huge number. The federal government took on 215 billion euros in new debt in 2021. Record. At the same time, another number dropped to almost zero, apparently embarrassing government officials. In any case, this number – namely interest expenditure – was not mentioned at all when the 2021 budget was presented.

Despite record debt, the federal government paid just 3.9 billion euros in interest on its liabilities – a record low. The federal government had originally calculated at 21.7 billion euros. And that’s how it’s been since the financial crisis.

Since 2008, the federal government has saved 228 billion euros in interest expenditure compared to its own budget planning. This is shown by new data from the Federal Ministry of Finance, which is available to the Handelsblatt.

Between 2008 and 2021, the federal government had estimated interest payments totaling 552 billion euros in its financial planning for debt service. But due to the record-low interest rates, it was significantly less in the end.