World debt soars 50% in a decade, exceeds GDP growth

Anadolu, Philippine News Agency

In other words, global debt now exceeds the world’s GDP by three times. (Pexels Photo)

ISTANBUL – Global debt surged by about 50 percent over the last decade, outpacing a 46 percent increase in global gross domestic product (GDP).

From the end of 2015 to the end of 2024, global debt rose by 49.

2 percent, from USD213.3 trillion to USD318.4 trillion, an additional USD105 trillion, data from the International Institute of Finance (IIF) shows.

Over the last 10 years, global GDP increased by approximately USD35 trillion, reaching USD110 trillion, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

In other words, global debt now exceeds the world’s GDP by three times.

During the same 10-year period, household debt rose by 50 percent to USD60.1 trillion, while debt for non-financial companies grew by 45 percent to USD91.3 trillion.

Financial firms saw the smallest increase at 33.4 percent, reaching a total of USD71.4 trillion.

Government debt, meanwhile, surged by 67.7 percent, rising from USD56.8 trillion at the end of 2015 to USD95.3 trillion by the end of 2024.

Mature markets’ debt soared by 34.3 percent to USD214.3 trillion as of the end of 2024, and emerging markets’ debt jumped by 92.

7 percent to USD103.7 trillion.

As for GDP, advanced economies saw a 41.7 percent increase, while emerging markets and developing economies posted a 53.2 percent rise.

The most impactful developments in the past decade were the measures introduced to ease the severe economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

While global GDP narrowed by around 2.5 percent year-on-year in 2020, according to the IMF, global debt rose by 13 percent over the same period, reaching USD291.2 trillion.

Since the World Health Organization declared the pandemic in January 2020, global debt has increased by 23.2 percent, from USD258.4 trillion to USD318.4 trillion, according to IIF data.

Over the same period, global GDP expanded by about 26 percent, IMF figures showed.

World trade also surged during this time, doubling from around USD16 trillion to about USD33 trillion.

Economy snapshots

The US’ total debt was at USD97.83 trillion at the end of 2024, rising by 62.5 percent over the past decade.

This means the US is responsible for around a third of global debt.

During the same period, the world’s largest economy, the US, grew by 58.4 percent, which was less than the debt increase.

As for the euro area, total debt rose 22 percent to USD54.5 trillion by the end of 2024.

The eurozone economy expanded by 38.5 percent in the 10-year period, growing faster than debt figures.

The UK’s debt increased by 12.5 percent over the past decade, while its GDP grew by 22.5 percent.

Russia’s debt totaled USD2.6 trillion as of the end of 2024, rising by 67.7 percent, while the Russian economy grew by 60.3 percent.

China’s debt figures rose by 123.4 percent to USD62.4 trillion over the same period, while its GDP expanded by 64.5 percent, about half the rate of its debt growth. (Anadolu)