Think the U.S. Has a Lot of Debt? Try These Countries
by Dustin M. on Oct 23, 2014 | Views: 238 | Score: 3
| Japan (1) | Zimbabwe (2) | Greece (3) | Italy (4) | Iceland (5) | Portugal (6) | United Kingdom (20) | Canada (23) | Germany (26) | United States (36) | Brazil (50) | Australia (112) | China (134) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Debt as a % of GDP (country rank) | 226.1 | 202.4 | 175 | 133 | 130.5 | 127.8 | 91.1 | 86.3 | 79.9 | 71.8 | 59.2 | 32.6 | 22.4 |
Sources:
cia.gov
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Although the United States has a very large outstanding public debt, it is useful to measure that debt compared to GDP - and when we do it doesn't look quite as bad. The U.S. is in the same range as many other developed countries, and even beats out the likes of Germany and Canada for a lower ratio.
Additionally, the risk of default is virtually nonexistent because the debt of the federal government is in our own currency. If need be, the FED could print our way out, though monetizing the debt is certainly not something that I would recommend.