Graph and download economic data for Federal Debt Held by Foreign and International Investors (FDHBFIN) from Q1 1970 to Q3 2025 about foreign, debt, federal, and USA.

As of December 2024, Japan held United States treasury securities totaling about 1.06 trillion U.S. dollars. Foreign holders of United States treasury debt According to the Federal Reserve and U.S. Department of the Treasury, foreign countries held a total of 8.5 trillion U.S. dollars in U.S. treasury securities as of December 2024. Of the total held by foreign countries, Japan and Mainland China held the greatest portions, with China holding 759 billion U.S. dollars in U.S. securities. The U.S. public debt In 2023, the United States had a total public national debt of 33.2 trillion U.S. dollars, an amount that has been rising steadily, particularly since 2008. In 2023, the total interest expense on debt held by the public of the United States reached 678 billion U.S. dollars, while 197 billion U.S. dollars in interest expense were intra governmental debt holdings. Total outlays of the U.S. government were 6.1 trillion U.S. dollars in 2023. By 2029, spending is projected to reach 8.3 trillion U.S. dollars.

External Debt in the United States increased to 29127909 USD Million in the third quarter of 2025 from 28604291 USD Million in the second quarter of 2025. This dataset provides - United States Net International Investment Position - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Key information about United States External Debt: % of GDP

• United States External Debt accounted for 94.3 % of the country's Nominal GDP in 2024, compared with the ratio of 93.4 % in the previous year.
• US External Debt: % of Nominal GDP data is updated yearly, available from Dec 2003 to Dec 2024.
• The data reached an all-time high of 99.9 % in Dec 2020 and a record low of 60.6 % in Dec 2003.

CEIC calculates External Debt as % of Nominal GDP from quarterly External Debt and annual Nominal GDP. The U.S. Department of the Treasury provides External Debt in USD based on BPM6. The Bureau of Economic Analysis provides Nominal GDP in USD. External Debt prior to 2014 is based on BPM5.


Related information about United States External Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports of US, Current Account recorded a deficit of 226.4 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) increased by 115.1 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• US Direct Investment Abroad expanded by 116.2 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• Its Foreign Portfolio Investment increased by 486.8 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• The country's External Debt reached 29,127,909.0 in Sep 2025.
• The country's Nominal GDP was reported at 7,621.4 USD bn in Jun 2025.

Panama is the Latin American country with the highest foreign debt in relation to its gross domestic product (GDP). The total debt held by Panama's central government to foreign creditors represented over 50 percent of the country's GDP in 2022. Nicaragua ranked second among the countries shown in this statistic, with an external debt equivalent to 40.5 percent of its GDP.

In September 2024, the national debt of the United States had risen up to 35.46 trillion U.S. dollars. The national debt per capita had risen to 85,552 U.S. dollars in 2021. As represented by the statistic above, the public debt of the United States has been continuously rising. U.S. public debt Public debt, also known as national and governmental debt, is the debt owed by a nations’ central government. In the case of the U.S., national debt is owed by the federal government to Treasury security holders. Generally speaking, government debt increases with government spending, and can be decreased through taxes. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. government increased spending significantly to finance virus infrastructure, aid, and various forms of economic relief. International public debt Venezuela leads the global ranking of the 20 countries with the highest public debt in 2021. In relation to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Venezuela's public debt amounted to around 306.95 percent of GDP. Eritrea was ranked fifth, with an estimated debt of 170 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. The national debt of the United Kingdom is forecasted to grow from 87 percent in 2022 to 70 percent in 2027, in relation to the Gross Domestic Product. These figures include England, Wales, Scotland as well as Northern Ireland. Greece had the highest national debt among EU countries as of the 4th quarter of 2020 in relation to the Gross Domestic Product. Germany ranked 13th in the EU, with its national debt amounting to 69 percent of GDP in the same time period. Tuvalu was one of the 20 countries with the lowest national debt in 2021 in relation to the GDP, while Macao had an estimated level of national debt of zero percent, the lowest of any country. The data refer to the debts of the entire state, including the central government, the provinces, municipalities, local authorities and social insurance.

Key information about United States External Debt: Short Term

• United States External Debt: Short Term value stood at 9,840.3 USD bn in Sep 2025, compared with 9,634.4 USD bn in the previous quarter.
• US External Debt: Short Term data is updated quarterly, available from Jun 2003 to Sep 2025.
• The data reached an all-time high of 9,840.3 USD bn in Sep 2025 and a record low of 2,718.8 USD bn in Jun 2003.

CEIC calculates quarterly Short Term External Debt as the sum of quarterly Short Term External Debt breakdowns for General Government, Central Bank, Deposit Taking Corporations and Other Sectors. The U.S. Department of the Treasury provides Short Term External Debt in USD based on BPM6. Short Term External Debt prior to Q3 2014 is based on BPM5.


Related information about United States External Debt: Short Term

• In the latest reports of US, Current Account recorded a deficit of 226.4 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) increased by 115.1 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• US Direct Investment Abroad expanded by 116.2 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• Its Foreign Portfolio Investment increased by 486.8 USD bn in Sep 2025.
• The country's Nominal GDP was reported at 7,621.4 USD bn in Jun 2025.

Total outstanding debt of the U.S. government reported daily. Includes a breakout of intragovernmental holdings (federal debt held by U.S. government) and debt held by the public (federal debt held by entities outside the U.S. government).

In 2023, China held **** percent of foreign held U.S. securities. Japan held a further **** percent of foreign held securities. The national debt of the United Stated can be found here.

Graph and download economic data for Foreign Banking Offices in the U.S.; Debt Securities; Asset, Level (FBOUSDSA) from Q4 1945 to Q4 2025 about foreign offices, foreign, debt, securities, assets, banks, depository institutions, and USA.

Key information about United States Government Debt: % of GDP

• United States Government debt accounted for 124.0 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Sep 2025, compared with the ratio of 120.9 % in the previous quarter.
• US government debt to GDP ratio data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 1969 to Sep 2025.
• The data reached an all-time high of 130.3 % in Mar 2021 and a record low of 31.8 % in Sep 1974.

CEIC calculates quarterly Government Debt as % of Nominal GDP from monthly Government Debt and rolling sum of quarterly Nominal GDP. The Bureau of the Fiscal Service provides Government Debt in USD. The Bureau of Economic Analysis provides Nominal GDP in USD. Government Debt covers Central Government only.


Related information about United States Government Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports, US National Government Debt reached 38,514.0 USD bn in Dec 2025.
• The country's Nominal GDP reached 7,621.4 USD bn in Jun 2025.

Graph and download economic data for Foreign Banking Offices in the U.S.; Debt Securities; Asset, Level (BOGZ1FL754022005A) from 1945 to 2024 about foreign offices, foreign, debt, securities, assets, banks, depository institutions, and USA.

United States - Federal Debt Held by Foreign and International Investors was 9127.70000 Bil. of $ in April of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Federal Debt Held by Foreign and International Investors reached a record high of 9127.70000 in April of 2025 and a record low of 12.40000 in January of 1970. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Federal Debt Held by Foreign and International Investors - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on February of 2026.

It was estimated that the external debt service in Latin American and Caribbean countries would amount to more than 683.56 billion U.S. dollars by 2025. As of 2023, the debt service was around 642 billion U.S. dollars.

A table that summarizes the amounts outstanding for the securities issued by the Bureau of the Fiscal Service adjusted for Unamortized Discount on Treasury Bills and Zero Coupon Treasury Bonds, Other Debt (old debt issued before 1917 and old currency called United States Notes), Debt held by the Federal Financing Bank and Guaranteed Debt of Government Agencies that makes up the Total Public Debt Subject to Limit amount.

High-level information on the federal government's outstanding debts, holdings, and the statutory debt limit. Data is reported monthly.

Graph and download economic data for Outstanding Total International Debt Securities to GDP for United States (DDDM07USA156NWDB) from 1980 to 2020 about issues, debt, GDP, and USA.

At the end of 2024, depository institutions owned around 5.12 percent of the total U.S. debt. Depository institutions includes U.S. chartered depository institutions, foreign banking offices in the United States, banks in U.S. affiliated areas, credit unions, and bank holding companies. The total debt accrued by the U.S. annually can be accessed here.

The average for 2024 based on 4 countries was 60.3 percent. The highest value was in El Salvador: 100 percent and the lowest value was in the USA: 6.74 percent. The indicator is available from 1998 to 2024. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The USA: External debt in foreign currencies, percent of total: The latest value from 2024 is 6.74 percent, an increase from 6.7 percent in 2023. In comparison, the world average is 74.10 percent, based on data from 43 countries. Historically, the average for the USA from 2012 to 2024 is 6.52 percent. The minimum value, 5.56 percent, was reached in 2015 while the maximum of 7.04 percent was recorded in 2019.