ROME, July 15 (Xinhua) -- Italy's public debt surged to a record 2.919 trillion euros in May, the Bank of Italy reported on Monday, marking a significant month-over-month increase driven by heightened public sector borrowing.
The debt level, which translates to 3.185 trillion U.S. dollars, was 13.3 billion euros higher than in April, setting an all-time high for public indebtedness. The biggest contributor to this increase was an 11.5-billion-euro rise in the public borrowing requirement, according to the Bank of Italy.
In June, Italy was one of seven countries cited by the European Commission as it opened formal procedures for excessive government deficits.
According to the European Commission's data, Italy's government deficit, at 7.4 percent of GDP, was the highest in the European Union (EU), significantly exceeding the EU's fiscal rule that mandates deficits be kept within 3 percent of GDP. ■