Why is Japanese debt so high?
Essentially, the Japanese government's strategy is to borrow at an extremely cheap rate and invest in risky, high-return assets—a factor that partially explains why Japan can sustain a high level of debt despite running a consistent deficit.
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.
At the top is Japan, whose national debt has remained above 100% of its GDP for two decades, reaching 255% in 2023.
Japan slips into a recession and loses its spot as the world's third-largest economy. TOKYO (AP) — Japan's economy is now the world's fourth-largest after it contracted in the last quarter of 2023 and fell behind Germany.
The most notable feature of Japan's economic growth since World War II is the rapid development of manufacturing, with progress in quantitative growth, quality, variety, and efficiency. Emphasis has shifted from light to heavy industries and to a higher degree of processing.
Japan has coped well with the pandemic and the energy crisis, but the fiscal support to help mitigate their impact has pushed up gross public debt to an unprecedented level of almost 245% of GDP in 2022.
In a ranking of debt to GDP per country, Japan is thus currently ranked first. With one of the largest gross domestic products (GDP), Japan is among the largest economies in the world.
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.
Brunei has no external debt due to its substantial income from oil and gas exports.
It is now generally recognized that Japan's economic problems reflect a failure to deal proactively with the impact of the collapse in asset prices in the early 1990s. The bubble in Japanese stock prices burst in 1990 and, by mid-1992, equity prices had fallen by about 60 percent.
Why did Japan have a financial crisis?
Japan's "Lost Decade" was a period that lasted from about 1991 to 2001 that saw a significant slowdown in Japan's previously bustling economy. The economic slowdown was caused, in part by the Bank of Japan (BOJ) hiking interest rates to cool down the real estate market.
Essentially, the export of industrial supplies and capital goods to emerging Asia was most severely affected as the region's demand for Japanese parts, components, and capital goods—all critical inputs for the production of final consumer products—declined steeply.
The largest industries are agriculture and fishing, manufacturing, and tourism among others. Japan's GDP per sector is as follows: services 71.4%, industry 27.5%, and agriculture 1.2%. 0.2% of the population of Japan lives under the poverty line of under $1.90 a day.
Another key factor behind Japan's sluggish growth is stagnating wages that have left households reluctant to spend. At the same time, businesses have been invested heavily in faster growing economies overseas instead of in the aging and shrinking home market.
The country's main imports include petroleum oils (11.2%) and gases (8%), coal (6.6%), electronic integrated circuits (3.6%), and telephones (3.2% - data Comtrade for 2022).
As a result, totals from January 2023 are lower than reported. As of January 2023, the five countries owning the most US debt are Japan ($1.1 trillion), China ($859 billion), the United Kingdom ($668 billion), Belgium ($331 billion), and Luxembourg ($318 billion).
Top 10 territories that own the most U.S. debt
Japan owns the most at $1.1 trillion, followed by China, with $859 billion, and the United Kingdom at $668 billion.
As of the end of 2022, debt per adult in Japan amounted to approximately 27.3 thousand U.S. dollars. This represented a decrease from 30.8 thousand dollars per capita in the previous year.
- Brunei. 3.2%
- Afghanistan. 7.8%
- Kuwait. 11.5%
- Democratic Republic of Congo. 15.2%
- Eswatini. 15.5%
- Palestine. 16.4%
- Russia. 17.8%
Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world, because it sits on top of four converging tectonic plates that constantly grind together. Some 1,500 earthquakes strike the country every year, although the majority are too mild to be felt.
Is the Philippines in debt?
82 trillion in debt since it assumed office, largely due to a high interest rate environment, pushing the country's outstanding obligation to an all-time high of P14. 62 trillion in 2023, according to the Bureau of the Treasury. The latest figure was also 8.92 percent higher than the end-2022 debt of P13. 42 trillion.
Ecuador, Argentina, Paraguay are all countries that have refused to repay debts to the World Bank, the IMF, the Paris Club and bankers. Eric Toussaint mentioned these examples yesterday at the UCAD press conference at the World Social Forum .
In fact, the Singapore Government has a strong balance sheet with no net debt. Our financial assets are well in excess of our debt. This net asset position is reflected in the net investment returns generated on our reserves, which is made available for Government spending via the Net Investment Returns Contribution.
You're still legally responsible for debt whether you're in the United States or not. You can also continue making payments on it, and if you do, you won't have any issues. If you abandon your debt, it won't follow you to a new country, but it can lead to other issues.
| Country | GDP Per Capita |
|---|---|
| Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) | $1,570.00 |
| Mozambique | $1,650.00 |
| Malawi | $1,710.00 |
| Niger | $1,730.00 |
