Government debt in global economy mounts to $88 trillion: IMF

Washington: – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said that the government debt burden in the global economy has reached $88 trillion. The debt is about 98% of GDP and is expected to grow further soon. During the Coronavirus pandemic period, measures taken by various countries to revive the economy led to an increase in government debt, the IMF said.

The Corona pandemic crisis in the global community is far from over. In some countries, the number of Coronavirus cases and deaths is still on the rise. This includes Russia, along with the continents of Africa and Latin America. At the same time, the United States, European countries, Japan and many countries in Asia and the Middle East are taking steps to revive the economy. The central banks in these countries have provided extensive financing and have also announced ambitious schemes.

As a result, government debt is rising along with the total debt in the global economy. According to the IMF, government debt has increased to $88 trillion. This is about 98% of the GDP of the current global economy. This is considered a record high. The IMF also warned that government debt would continue to be more than the projections made before the Coronavirus pandemic in future as well.

The IMF said that the level of government debt would continue to rise over the next five years. Developed economies will be at the forefront in this. The debt of these countries could be as much as 20% higher than previous estimates. The developed economies accounted for a whopping 90% of the increase in debt this year. These include the United States, Japan, Europe and China. The government debt has reached 257% of GDP. in Japan alone.

According to the IMF, at the end of 2020, the debt in the global economy was nearly $226 trillion. Compared to 2019, debt has increased by $27 trillion in just one year. In the first six months of 2021, the debt burden on the global economy mounted to $296 trillion, according to data released by the Institute of International Finance. A report by the IMF and the Institute of International Finance claims that by the end of 2021, the debt burden in the global economy could cross the $300 trillion level.