Thirtynine US-Trillion $39T Debt = Balance

I asked perplexity.ai on Nov 9th, 2024:

How much is the current debt of the US of A and how much of the GDP is that in percent?

As of the most recent data available, the United States‘ debt situation is as follows:

Total Debt

The total federal government debt of the United States reached $35.7 trillion by October 2024 [4]. This represents a significant increase from earlier in the year, as the debt had grown by approximately $1 trillion in two separate 100-day periods since June 2024 [4].

Debt-to-GDP Ratio

The debt-to-GDP ratio, which measures the country’s debt relative to its economic output, stands at:

122.3% of GDP as of June 2024, according to the most recent quarterly data [2].

This figure represents a slight decrease from the previous quarter, which was 123.2% [2]. However, it’s important to note that different sources may provide slightly varying figures due to differences in calculation methods and timing:

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that federal debt held by the public is projected to rise from 99% of GDP in 2024 to 116% in 2034 [4].
Trading Economics expects the government debt-to-GDP ratio to reach 124.3% by the end of 2024 [3].

Historical Context

The current debt-to-GDP ratio is significantly higher than historical averages. From 1940 until 2023, the average government debt-to-GDP ratio in the United States was 65.7% [3]. The ratio reached an all-time high of 126.3% in 2020, largely due to the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic [3].

Composition of Debt

As of December 2023, the $33.1 trillion total federal debt was composed of:

$26.5 trillion held by the public
$12.1 trillion in intragovernmental debt [4]

Debt Servicing Costs

The annualized cost of servicing this debt was $726 billion in July 2023, which accounted for 14% of the total federal spending [4].

It’s worth noting that the debt and debt-to-GDP ratio are subject to frequent changes based on government spending, economic growth, and other factors. The trend indicates a continuing increase in both total debt and the debt-to-GDP ratio, which has implications for the country’s fiscal health and future economic policies.

Citations:
[1] https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/united-states/total-debt–of-gdp
[2] https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/united-states/government-debt–of-nominal-gdp
[3] https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/government-debt-to-gdp
[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_debt_of_the_United_States
[5] https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/countries/USA/united-states/debt-to-gdp-ratio
[6] https://www.statista.com/statistics/273294/public-debt-of-the-united-states-by-month/
[7] https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/GFDEGDQ188S
[8] https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/GG_DEBT_GDP@GDD/CAN/FRA/DEU/ITA/JPN/GBR/USA