Global debt-to-GDP ratio edges lower

Global government debt-to-GDP ratio is now nine percentage points lower than its peak at end 2020

Debt-to-GDP ratios across all debt categories are down from their Q4 2020-Q1 2021 peaks

(Debt-to-GDP ratio by borrower category, %)

Key Takeaways

» The global government debt-toGDP ratio is declining following strong 2021 growth, high inflation, weak 2022 issuance and rising sovereign defaults

» The total change in government debt-to-GDP ratio between 2022 and 2019 of about eight percentage points (pp), is smaller than the 17 pp increase between 2010 and 2007 during the global financial crisis

» The global government debt-toGDP ratio at the end of 2022 was on par with the global corporate debt-to-GDP ratio at 97%