Who is China indebted to?
Furthermore, debt owed by state-owned industrial firms is another 74% of GDP according to the International Monetary Fund. The three government-owned banks (China Development Bank, Agricultural Development Bank of China and Exim Bank of China) owe a further 29% of GDP.
Cities and provinces across the country have accumulated a massive amount of hidden debt following years of unchecked borrowing and spending. The International Monetary Fund and Wall Street banks estimate that the total outstanding off-balance-sheet government debt is around $7 trillion to $11 trillion.
China has little overseas debt, and a high national savings rate. In addition, most of the debt is state owned – state-controlled banks loaned funds to state-controlled firms – giving the government the ability to manage the situation.
Though China owns a large amount of U.S. debt, it isn't the United States's largest creditor. The greatest amount of U.S. debt is owned by the U.S. government, while the largest foreign creditor is Japan. China owns around 2.6% of U.S. debt, which it buys because the Chinese yuan is pegged to the dollar.
At the end of 2021, of the 98 countries for whom data was available, Pakistan ($27.4 billion of external debt to China), Angola (22.0 billion), Ethiopia (7.4 billion), Kenya (7.4 billion) and Sri Lanka (7.2 billion) held the biggest debts to China.
Debt as a share of GDP has risen to about the same level as in the United States, while in dollar terms China's total debt ($47.5 trillion) is still markedly below that of the United States (close to $70 trillion). As for non-financial corporate debt, China's 28 percent share is the largest in the world.
Singapore is one of Asia's major financial centers. It is also one of the most prosperous countries on the planet. And all this has been achieved without taking on any meaningful public debt. In fact, very much like Norway, Singapore has more assets than debt.
US Treasurys Owned by China, in USD Billions
As of Oct. 2022, China owns $769.6 billion of the total $7,565 billion U.S. national debt.
At the top is Japan, whose national debt has remained above 100% of its GDP for two decades, reaching 255% in 2023.
Even though a financial crisis is improbable, this doesn't mean that China will escape its current debt problems unscathed. Real losses have been incurred by lenders from the collapse of property activity, the shift of factories to other countries, and the toll of the country's prolonged zero-Covid policy.
How bad is China's debt problem?
Public sector debt was RMB 30.3 trillion (53.2% of GDP) while private sector debt (including both household and non-financial corporate sector) amounted to RMB 103.5 trillion (181.9% of GDP). The banking sector is still the biggest lender in China.
'International crisis manager'
AidData says Beijing never had to deal with more than 10 financially-distressed countries with unpaid debts until 2008. But, by 2021, there were at least 57 countries with outstanding debt to Chinese state-owned creditors that were in financial distress, its data shows.
It's going to put it into bonds of other countries. It will have to buy other currencies in order to invest in those countries' bonds. So US interest rates will no doubt rise as the supply of US Treasury bonds suddenly increases and the dollar will fall as China moves a lot of money out of dollars.
Industrial production and manufacturing exports are major forces driving the economy. However, perhaps significantly, the country is not nearly as developed as other countries in the top 10. Government spending is a key driver of growth that has led to indiscriminate construction over the last few years.
China's debt-to-GDP ratio climbs to record 287.8% in 2023 - Nikkei Asia.
A neologism, the term was first coined by Indian academic Brahma Chellaney in 2017 to contend that the Chinese government lends and then leverages the debt burden of smaller countries for geopolitical ends.
Government Debt to GDP in Russia is expected to reach 18.10 percent of GDP by the end of 2024, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations.
Which countries hold the most US debt? Over the past 20 years, Japan and China have owned more US Treasurys than any other foreign nation. Between 2000 and 2022, Japan grew from owning $534 billion to just over $1 trillion, while China's ownership grew from $101 billion to $855 billion.
Japan sells more to the U.S. than it buys from the U.S. and thus has excess dollars; Japanese investors can easily get a better and safer return by buying U.S. Treasury bonds than by buying other investment vehicles.
The United States upholds its status as the major global economy and richest country, steadfastly preserving its pinnacle position from 1960 to 2023. Its economy boasts remarkable diversity, propelled by important sectors, including services, manufacturing, finance, and technology.
Is Singapore in debt?
The Singapore Government has no net debt. We have a strong balance sheet with assets in excess of liabilities.
Luxembourg, whose financial sector makes up 25% of its GDP, is the world's richest country by GDP per capita.
The largest holder of U.S. debt is the U.S government. Which agencies own the most Treasury notes, bills, and bonds? Social Security, by a long shot. The U.S. Treasury publishes this information in its monthly Treasury statement.
One theory: “They have to sell these Treasurys to help support the yuan,” he said. Selling Treasurys is a fast way to whip up U.S. dollars, and China will sometimes use extra dollars to go out on the global market and buy up their own currency. That artificially pumps up its value.
Chinese firms and investors own just over 383,934 acres in the U.S., less than the state of Rhode Island, and far less than how much Canada, Netherlands, Italy, the U.K. and Germany, in that order, each own. China is No.
