By Laura Contemori – ROME (Econostream) – Italy’s public debt rose by €19.5 billion in March from the previous month to €3.159 trillion, Bank of Italy data showed on Friday.

The general government borrowing requirement amounted to €31.5 billion in March, while Treasury liquid assets declined by €10.8 billion to €64.0 billion. Other factors, including issuance and redemption premiums, inflation-linked bond revaluations and exchange-rate movements, reduced the debt stock by €1.2 billion.

Central government debt increased by €19.9 billion during the month, while local government debt fell by €0.4 billion. Debt of social security institutions was broadly unchanged.

The average residual maturity of public debt remained unchanged at 7.9 years.

The share of debt held by the Bank of Italy declined to 17.6% from 18.0% in the previous month. In February, the share held by non-residents rose to 35.4% from 34.8% in January, while the share held by other resident holders, mainly households and non-financial corporations, edged down to 14.2% from 14.3%.

Tax revenues recorded in the state budget totaled €38.9 billion in March, up 2.2% from the same month a year earlier. In the first three months of 2026, tax revenues amounted to €129.0 billion, up 0.8% year on year.