North Macedonia: Subsidies and other transfers (current LCU)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, North Macedonia's subsidies and other transfers (current LCU) rose 10% on 2023 (from 208.38 billion to 229.2 billion).

Across the 18 yearly changes before that (2006 to 2023), the average change was +11.2% and a typical year strayed about 15% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 67.3% in 2008. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about 13.66 billion a year. A straight line explains 98% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 254.74 billion for 2027. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2022 to 2024 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 23.06 billion, against 32.78 billion for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2024, North Macedonia had the 42nd highest value of the 89 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to North Macedonia in the 2024 ranking

• Netherlands — 39th of 89: 342.98 billion
• Israel — 40th of 89: 326.38 billion
• Dominican Republic — 41st of 89: 302.22 billion
• Ethiopia — 43rd of 89: 222.79 billion
• Austria — 44th of 89: 175.11 billion
• Morocco — 45th of 89: 144.97 billion

What this measures

Subsidies are current unrequited payments that government units, including nonresident government units, make to enterprises on the basis of the levels of their production activities or the quantities or values of the goods or services that they produce, sell, export or import. This indicator is expressed in current prices, meaning no adjustment has been made to account for price changes over time. This series is expressed in local currency units.

Limitations: For most countries central government finance data have been consolidated into one account, but for others only budgetary central government accounts are available. Countries reporting budgetary data are noted in the country metadata. Because budgetary accounts may not include all central government units (such as social security funds), they usually provide an incomplete picture. In federal states the central government accounts provide an incomplete view of total public finance. Data on government revenue and expense are collected by the IMF through questionnaires to member countries and by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

All 20 values

Subsidies and other transfers (current LCU) in nearby economies

• Albania — 370.22 billion (2024)
• Armenia — 1.14 trillion (2024)
• Austria — 175.11 billion (2024)
• Azerbaijan — 13.45 billion (2024)
• Belarus — 46.69 billion (2024)
• Belgium — 133.51 billion (2024)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 9.84 billion (2024)
• Bulgaria — 17.9 billion (2024)
• Croatia — 17.93 billion (2023)
• Cyprus — 5.97 billion (2024)

More public sector data for North Macedonia

• Military expenditure (current USD) — 374.75 million (2025)
• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 20.45 billion (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 1.97% (2025)
• Armed forces personnel, total — 16,000 (2020)
• Armed forces personnel (% of total labor force) — 2% (2020)
• Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) — 5.13% (2025)
• Intentional homicides, female (per 100,000 female) — 0.96 (2023)
• Intentional homicides, male (per 100,000 male) — 2.13 (2023)
• Intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) — 1.53 (2023)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is North Macedonia's subsidies and other transfers (current LCU)?

229.2 billion in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2005?

It is up 554.94% from 34.99 billion in 2005 (10.4% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 229.2 billion in 2024 and the lowest 34.99 billion in 2005.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator GC.XPN.TRFT.CN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.