Countries by government balance as a share of GDP
Norway had the highest government balance as a share of GDP of 42 countries in 2013, at 10.3% of GDP. Greece had the lowest, at -13.6% of GDP. The median was -2.6% of GDP. Source: the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
All countries, 2013
Full ranking
| Rank | Countries | 2013 | Change on 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norway | 10.3 | -3 pts |
| 2 | South Korea | 1.2 | +0.2 pts |
| 3 | Luxembourg | 0.8 | +0.3 pts |
| 4 | Germany | 0.1 | +0.2 pts |
| 5 | Estonia | -0.2 | +0.2 pts |
| 6 | Switzerland | -0.5 | -0.7 pts |
| 7 | Russia | -0.6 | -2.3 pts |
| 8 | China | -0.6 | -0.6 pts |
| 9 | Chile Estimated | -0.6 | -0.9 pts |
| 10 | Iceland | -0.9 | +1.7 pts |
| 11 | New Zealand | -0.9 | +1.5 pts |
| 12 | Denmark | -0.9 | +2.3 pts |
| 13 | Latvia | -1.3 | +0.2 pts |
| 14 | Czechia | -1.3 | +2.6 pts |
| 15 | Canada | -1.5 | +1 pts |
| 16 | Colombia | -1.5 | -1.1 pts |
| 17 | Sweden | -1.6 | -0.4 pts |
| 18 | Indonesia | -1.9 | -0.8 pts |
| 19 | Austria | -2 | +0.2 pts |
| 20 | Finland | -2.5 | -0.4 pts |
| 21 | Hungary | -2.6 | -0.3 pts |
| 22 | Costa Rica | -2.6 | -0.9 pts |
| 23 | Lithuania | -2.7 | +0.5 pts |
| 24 | Australia | -2.8 | +0.1 pts |
| 25 | Slovakia | -2.9 | +1.5 pts |
| 26 | Netherlands | -2.9 | +1 pts |
| 27 | Italy | -2.9 | +0.1 pts |
| 28 | Belgium | -3.2 | +1.2 pts |
| 29 | Brazil | -3.3 | -1 pts |
| 30 | Mexico | -3.6 | +0.9 pts |
| 31 | South Africa | -3.7 | +0.4 pts |
| 32 | Israel | -4.1 | +0.4 pts |
| 33 | Poland | -4.2 | -0.5 pts |
| 34 | France | -4.9 | +0.2 pts |
| 35 | Portugal | -5.2 | +1 pts |
| 36 | United Kingdom | -5.3 | +2.7 pts |
| 37 | United States | -5.8 | +3.4 pts |
| 38 | Ireland | -6.3 | +2.1 pts |
| 39 | Spain | -7.5 | +4 pts |
| 40 | Japan | -7.6 | +0.6 pts |
| 41 | Slovenia | -11.2 | -7 pts |
| 42 | Greece | -13.6 | -4.3 pts |
Other periods
About this ranking
General government net lending (+) or net borrowing (-) as a percentage of GDP.
Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the countries are compared on one definition. 5 countries with data in other periods have no value for 2013 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.
How to cite
OECD. OECD National Accounts at a Glance: net lending (+) or net borrowing (-) of general government, percentage of GDP (DSD_NAAG_VI@DF_NAAG_VI, B9S13). https://data-explorer.oecd.org/vis?df[ds]=dsDisseminateFinalDMZ&df[id]=DSD_NAAG_VI%40DF_NAAG_VI&df[ag]=OECD.SDD.NAD. Accessed 2026-10-12. Data reuse terms and downstream attribution: https://www.oecd.org/en/about/terms-conditions.htmlUse this data in your AI agent
Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:
Rank Countries by government balance as a share of GDP using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"government_deficit","level":"country","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=government_deficit&level=country&limit=10Questions
Which country has the highest government balance as a share of GDP?
Norway, with 10.3% of GDP in 2013, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Which country has the lowest government balance as a share of GDP?
Greece, with -13.6% of GDP in 2013.
Where does this ranking come from?
Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, OECD National Accounts at a Glance: net lending (+) or net borrowing (-) of general government, percentage of GDP (DSD_NAAG_VI@DF_NAAG_VI, B9S13). Retrieved 2026-10-12. 5 countries have no value for 2013 and are not ranked.