What is ‘global debt’ - and how high is it now?

Dec 21, 2023

Global debt has hit a record $307 trillion in 2023, according to the Institute of International Finance. Image: Reuters/Sarah Silbiger

Madeleine North

Writer, Forum Agenda

Our Impact

The Big Picture

Explore and monitor how Financial and Monetary Systems is affecting economies, industries and global issues

A hand holding a looking glass by a lake

Crowdsource Innovation

Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:

Financial and Monetary Systems

Listen to the article

Global debt is on the rise. Image: IMF

Discover

What is the Forum doing to improve the global banking system?

Have you read?

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

The Agenda Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

Subscribe today

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.

More on Financial and Monetary Systems
See all

Stock exchanges can be pillars of trust in a turbulent world

Laura M. Cha

January 10, 2024

How innovative financial solutions can build climate resilience

Daniel Murphy

January 10, 2024

These charts show which businesses are driving the EU economy

Ewan Thomson

January 9, 2024

Businesses must address nature-related financial risks. Here's why

David Craig and Elizabeth Mrema

January 8, 2024

The world’s central banks are treading cautiously into 2024. Here’s why

Emma Charlton

December 21, 2023

Finance and the economy: Our 5 top stories from 2023

Joe Myers

December 15, 2023

What is ‘global debt’ - and how high is it now?

Victoria Masterson

Madeleine North

Share:

Explore and monitor how Financial and Monetary Systems is affecting economies, industries and global issues

Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:

Financial and Monetary Systems

Have you read?

What happens if a country defaults on its debts?

These strategies will limit the impact of private debt on the global economic recovery

Soaring global debt and hiked interest rates are creating a big issue for developing countries. Here’s why

Davos 2024: Who's coming and what to expect

Don't miss any update on this topic

Related topics:

Share:

The Agenda Weekly

More on Financial and Monetary Systems
See all

Madeleine North

Share:

.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;color:#2846F8;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{font-size:1.125rem;}}Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:

Financial and Monetary Systems

Have you read?

What happens if a country defaults on its debts?

These strategies will limit the impact of private debt on the global economic recovery

Soaring global debt and hiked interest rates are creating a big issue for developing countries. Here’s why

Davos 2024: Who's coming and what to expect

Don't miss any update on this topic

Related topics:

Share:

The Agenda .chakra .wef-n7bacu{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-weight:400;}Weekly

Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

The Agenda Weekly