Key Takeaways. Whether you're an American retiree or a Chinese bank, American debt is considered a sound investment. The Chinese yuan, like the currencies of many nations, is tied to the U.S. dollar. Because of varying maturities dates, China would be unable to call in all its Treasury holdings at once.
China and Japan are the largest foreign investors in American government debt. Together they own $2 trillion — more than a quarter — of the $7.6 trillion in US Treasury securities held by foreign countries.
U.S. debt to China comes in the form of U.S. Treasuries, largely due to their safety and stability. Although there are worries about China selling off U.S. debt, which would hamper economic growth, doing so in large amounts poses risks for China as well, making it unlikely to happen.
From a national perspective, China buys U.S. debt due to its complex financial system. The central bank must purchase U.S. Treasuries and other foreign assets to keep cash inflows from causing inflation.
China is currently the second-largest holder of US government debt, behind Japan. According to data from the US Treasury, China held US$869.3 billion worth of such debt in March, up from US$848.8 billion in February.
According to usafacts.org, as of January 2023, Japan owned $1.1 trillion in US Treasuries, making it the largest foreign holder of the national debt. The second-largest holder is China, which owned $859 billion of US debt.
Top 10 territories that own the most U.S. debt
In total, other territories hold about $7.4 trillion in U.S. debt. Japan owns the most at $1.1 trillion, followed by China, with $859 billion, and the United Kingdom at $668 billion.
At the end of 2021, of the 98 countries for whom data was available, Pakistan ($27.4 billion of external debt to China), Angola (22.0 billion), Ethiopia (7.4 billion), Kenya (7.4 billion) and Sri Lanka (7.2 billion) held the biggest debts to China.
How much does Russia owe? About $40 billion US in foreign bonds, about half of that to foreigners.
So if the U.S. cannot pay its creditors, interest rates on U.S. debt would go up, creating a cascade of higher interest rates. So mortgage rates, credit card rates, car loan rates. All would become more expensive. Finally, there is a real concern about the economy — that a default could spark a recession.
Because Japan exports so many goods to the U.S. and other nations, the country frequently develops an account surplus in dollars - the currency the U.S. and other countries give Japan in exchange for their products.
A flurry of big spending packages and ballooning social welfare costs for a rapidly ageing population have left Japan with a debt pile 263% the size of its economy - double the ratio for the United States and the highest among major economies.
1 Foreign governments hold a large portion of the public debt, while the rest is owned by U.S. banks and investors, the Federal Reserve, state and local governments, mutual funds, pensions funds, insurance companies, and holders of savings bonds.
An Associated Press analysis of a dozen countries most indebted to China — including Pakistan, Kenya, Zambia, Laos and Mongolia — found paying back that debt is consuming an ever-greater amount of the tax revenue needed to keep schools open, provide electricity and pay for food and fuel.
The case of debts arising from World War II is somewhat less complicated. At this time only four countries, discussed below, owe the U.S. government debts of any size arising from World War II programs to aid our allies. Other countries have paid their debts in full.
Australia also partners with the World Bank Group on specific development programs which support Australia's development policy priorities. Over the last five years, Australia's annual average contributions to the WBG (core and non-core) has been around USD400 million.
Flashpoints that greatly contributed to the debt over the past 50 years include the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the 2008 financial crisis and the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic -- the latter two prompting sweeping stimulus measures from Congress that cost trillions of dollars.
When adding portfolio debts (including the $1 trillion of U.S. Treasury debt purchased by China's central bank) and trade credits (to buy goods and services), the Chinese government's aggregate claims to the rest of the world exceed $5 trillion in total.
If the China bloc disposes of net foreign assets amounting to more than 20% of GDP by offloading US bloc bonds over 10 years, the IMF finds that the China bloc's domestic interest rates would fall by four basis points.
Driven by industrial production and manufacturing exports, China's GDP is actually now the largest in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP) equivalence. Despite this growth, China's economy remains strictly controlled by its government where there are accusations of corruption, unfair dealings, and falsified data.
Accounting for 70% of all American debt, mortgage debt carries the highest total at $10.44 trillion. Forty-two percent of households have mortgages. (That's over 51.5 million total American households).
Jerome Kerviel, The Most Indebted Person In The World, Owes $6.3 Billion To Former Employer, Societe Generale. In a hyper-competitive world where everyone strives to be the biggest, boldest and most famous, no one covets Jerome Kerviel record-breaking achievement. He is the most indebted person in the world.