National Debt by Country / Countries with the Highest National Debt 2023 (2024)

FAQs

What country owes the most national debt? ›

Japan. Japan held $1.08 trillion in Treasury securities as of November 2022, beating out China as the largest foreign holder of U.S. debt.3 The low and negative yield market in Japan makes holding U.S. debt attractive.

The United States has the largest external debt in the world. The total number of U.S. Treasury securities held by foreign countries in December 2021 was $7.7 trillion, up from $7.1 trillion in December 2020.

Overall, foreign countries each make up a relatively small proportion of U.S. debt-holders. Although China's holdings have represented just under 20 percent of foreign-owned U.S. debt in the past several years, this percentage only comprises between 5 and 7 percent of total U.S. debt.

At the end of FY 2022 the federal debt was $30.84 trillion. At the end of FY 2023 federal debt is “guesstimated” to amount to $32.69 trillion. Thus far, on 2023-03-09, the federal debt is $31.46 trillion.

"No doubt, China's current debt crisis has the potential to exacerbate existing socio-economic tensions," Singleton said, adding that renewed public protests like those in late 2022 could emerge, as Chinese citizens come to terms with "vanishing jobs, closed businesses and reduced wages."

The best example can be taken from Hong Kong (it is a one of the debt free countries), whose economy has the least debt to GDP ratio.

The size of China's debt problem is truly staggering. At last measure, debt of all sorts – public and private and in all sectors of the economy — amounted to the equivalent of $51.9 trillion, almost three times the size of China's economy as measured by the country's gross domestic product.

Can the U.S. Pay Off its Debt? As budget deficits are one of the factors that contribute to the national debt, the U.S. can take measures to pay off its debt through budget surpluses. The last time that the U.S. held a budget surplus was in 2001.

Tax cuts, stimulus programs, increased government spending, and decreased tax revenue caused by widespread unemployment generally account for sharp rises in the national debt.

Who does the US owe 30 trillion debt to? ›

It's the amount of money the U.S. owes to outside debtors such as U.S. banks and investors, businesses, individuals, state and local governments, Federal Reserve and foreign governments and international investors like Japan and China. The money is borrowed to raise the cash needed to keep the U.S. operating.

How much money does the U.S. owe to China? China owns roughly $1.08 trillion worth of U.S. debt. 2 This amount is subject to market fluctuations. The value will change whenever China trades Treasury securities or when the prices of those bonds change.

At its peak in April 2022, the Fed held more than $6.25 trillion in U.S. government debt, more than double its holdings just before the pandemic hit the U.S. in March 2020.

The public debt of Japan has continued to rise in response to a number of challenges, including but not limited to the Great Recession in 2008, the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and f*ckushima nuclear disaster in 2011, and the COVID-19 pandemic in between January 2020 and October 2021, (which also held ramifications for ...

Repercussions. The repercussions for China of such an offloading would be worse. An excess supply of U.S. dollars would lead to a decline in USD rates, making RMB valuations higher. It would increase the cost of Chinese products, making them lose their competitive price advantage.

The country's net economic power would increase as more money was spent on goods and non-financial services—production rather than monetary intermediaries. We would be back to being able to consume what our country's economic capacity could produce.

Key Takeaways. Whether you're an American retiree or a Chinese bank, American debt is considered a sound investment. The Chinese yuan, like the currencies of many nations, is tied to the U.S. dollar. Because of varying maturities dates, China would be unable to call in all its Treasury holdings at once.

The forecasters have reduced their estimates for the probability that core PCE inflation in 2023 will be 3.5 percent or higher compared with their prediction in the last survey.

The Social Security Trust Fund

The trust fund holds Treasury securities similar to those held by private citizens, businesses, and governments around the world. It holds roughly one-fifth of total Treasury debt outstanding.

What country is China in debt trap? ›

Laos. According to the World Bank, by the end of 2021, Laos's public debt had skyrocketed to 88% of gross domestic product, with Chinese creditors accounting for a 47% share of foreign debt. In addition, Laos owes 11% of its debt to China from bilateral loans. The firing of Bank of the Lao P.D.R.

United States - Federal Government; Net Worth (IMA), Level was -20997153.00000 Mil. of $ in July of 2022, according to the United States Federal Reserve.

International Loans. According to World Bank data analyzed by Statista, countries heavily in debt to China are mostly located in Africa, but can also be found in Central Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific.

With a GDP of 23.32 trillion dollars, the USA is by far the world's largest economy in this ranking for 2021. It is followed by China in second place with a GDP of 17.73 trillion dollars. Canada is also quite far ahead in the international comparison and occupies the ninth place in this ranking.

The public holds over $24.53 trillion of the national debt, as of January 2023.1 Foreign governments hold a large portion of the public debt, while the rest is owned by U.S. banks and investors, the Federal Reserve, state and local governments, mutual funds, pensions funds, insurance companies, and holders of savings ...

How bad is it? China's debt is more than 250 percent of GDP, higher than the United States. It remains lower than Japan, the world's most indebted leading economy, but some experts say the concern is that China's debt has surged at the sort of pace that usually leads to a financial bust and economic slump.

Key Takeaways

The national debt also impacts the economy because if it gets too high, consumer and business confidence in the economy may dwindle, which could lead to turmoil in the financial markets and higher interest rates.

If the government has poor rating and is already in high debt then the foreign countries will charge higher interest rate on the borrowed loans. When countries are unable to pay back on their loans to their creditors then they declare bankruptcy and are then considered defaulted.

Has the government borrowed money from Social Security? ›

Since 1983, every US President has borrowed from Social Security to pay for government expenditures. However, there is no evidence that any of the presidents has stolen a dime from Social Security.

Economists say consequences of a default on the national debt could include higher interest rates, a stock market crash, a recession and massive job losses. NBC's Alice Barr reports. The U.S. officially hit the debt ceiling on Jan. 18, 2023.

The debt limit caps the total amount of allowable outstanding U.S. federal debt. The U.S. hit that limit—$31.4 trillion—on January 19, 2023, but the Department of the Treasury has been undertaking a set of “extraordinary measures” so that the debt limit does not yet bind.

The average American holds a debt balance of $96,371, according to 2021 Experian data, the latest data available. That's up 3.9 percent from 2020's average balance of $92,727, largely due to the rising balance of mortgage and auto loans.

President Andrew Jackson Cuts Debt to Zero

By selling federally owned western lands and blocking spending on infrastructure projects, Jackson paid off the national debt after six years in office. This actually created a government surplus that Jackson divided among indebted states.

Foreign governments as well as banks and private investors, state and local governments and the Federal Reserve own most of this debt, and it's held in Treasury securities, bills and bonds. Foreign governments and private investors are one of the biggest holders of the public debt, owning around $7.7 trillion.

That piece of the U.S. national debt — debt held by the public — accounts for nearly 80% of the $31.4 trillion. As of the most recent Treasury statement, it was $24.6 trillion.

Washington, D.C., August 17, 2022

China owns and controls almost 192,000 acres of farmland right here in the United States.

Those with the highest external debt to China are Pakistan $77.3 billion, Angola $36.3 billion, Ethiopia $7.9 billion, Kenya $7.4 billion and Sri Lanka $6.8 billion.

More international contracts could be priced in yuan, which would mean China would not have to worry so much about the dollar's value. All central banks would have to hold yuan as part of their foreign exchange reserves, which would place the yuan in higher demand and lower interest rates for bonds denominated in yuan.

Who is the US in debt too? ›

Japan held $1.08 trillion in Treasury securities as of November 2022, beating out China as the largest foreign holder of U.S. debt.3 The low and negative yield market in Japan makes holding U.S. debt attractive.

Government Debt in Canada is expected to reach 900.00 CAD Billion by the end of 2023, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations.

The U.S. has had debt since its inception. Our records show that debts incurred during the American Revolutionary War amounted to $75,463,476.52 by January 1, 1791. Over the following 45 years, the debt grew.

Italian debt is overwhelmingly and increasingly held by resident banks and investors, as shown by the updated figures in our database on sovereign bonds holdings. In this blog post, I discuss possible implications.

As of December 2021, the Bank of Japan held 48.1 percent of outstanding Japanese Government Bonds (JGBs). While Japan's central bank held the largest share of JGBs, households accounted for a share of 1.2 percent.

Japan's economy contracted slightly in Q3 2022, raising concern that the recovery that had just begun was coming to an end. However, the contraction was due mostly to a drop in net exports,¹ which is hardly an indicator for the country's domestic economy.

Japan - Debt: 221.32% of GDP

Japan's debt-to-GDP ratio is the highest in the world due to a prolonged period of economic stagnation and demographic challenges.

Tax cuts, stimulus programs, increased government spending, and decreased tax revenue caused by widespread unemployment generally account for sharp rises in the national debt.

Of the nearly $31.46 trillion or so in public debt, about $73.5 billion is not subject to the statutory debt limit; most of that represents the accounting treatment of certain Treasury securities sold at a discount to their face value ($68.2 billion) and debt held by the Federal Financing Bank ($4.8 billion).

Could the US ever get out of debt? ›

In modern history, the U.S. has never defaulted on its debt. The debt ceiling is the self-imposed limit on how much debt Congress allows the federal government to have. If Congress does not raise or suspend the debt ceiling, the U.S. could default on its debt, which would also impact financial markets and the economy.

Raising taxes and cutting spending are two of the most popular solutions for reducing debt, but politicians may be hesitant to do both. Diverting spending from the military to other sectors may boost job growth, which could spur consumer spending and help the economy.

The debt limit does not authorize new spending commitments. It simply allows the government to finance existing legal obligations that Congresses and presidents of both parties have made in the past. Failing to increase the debt limit would have catastrophic economic consequences.

The public holds over $24.53 trillion of the national debt, as of January 2023.1 Foreign governments hold a large portion of the public debt, while the rest is owned by U.S. banks and investors, the Federal Reserve, state and local governments, mutual funds, pensions funds, insurance companies, and holders of savings ...

The National Debt Clock says that “debt per citizen” is currently $87,124. But there's more, much more.