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$69 Trillion of World Debt in One Infographic

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$69 Trillion of World Debt in One Infographic

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$69 Trillion of World Debt in One Infographic

Two decades ago, total government debt was estimated to sit at $20 trillion.

Since then, according to the latest figures by the IMF, the number has ballooned to $69.3 trillion with a debt to GDP ratio of 82% — the highest totals in human history.

Which countries owe the most money, and how do these figures compare?

The Regional Breakdown

Let’s start by looking at the continental level, to get an idea of how world debt is divided from a geographical perspective:

RegionDebt to GDPGross Debt (Billions of USD)% of Total World Debt
Asia and Pacific79.8%$24,12034.8%
North America100.4%$23,71034.2%
Europe74.2%$16,22523.4%
South America75.0%$2,6993.9%
Africa56.9%$1,3131.9%
Other37.1%$1,2311.8%
World81.8%$69,298100.0%

In absolute terms, over 90% of global debt is concentrated in North America, Asia Pacific, and Europe — meanwhile, regions like Africa, South America, and other account for less than 10%.

This is not surprising, since advanced economies hold most of the world’s debt (about 75.4%), while emerging or developing economies hold the rest.

World Debt by Country

Now let’s look at individual countries, according to data released by the IMF in October 2019.

It’s worth mentioning that the following numbers are representative of 2018 data, and that for a tiny subset of countries (i.e. Syria) we used the latest available numbers as an estimate.

RankCountryDebt to GDPGross Debt ($B)% of World Total
#1🇺🇸 United States104.3%$21,46531.0%
#2🇯🇵 Japan237.1%$11,78817.0%
#3🇨🇳 China, People's Republic of50.6%$6,7649.8%
#4🇮🇹 Italy132.2%$2,7444.0%
#5🇫🇷 France98.4%$2,7363.9%
#6🇬🇧 United Kingdom86.8%$2,4553.5%
#7🇩🇪 Germany61.7%$2,4383.5%
#8🇮🇳 India68.1%$1,8512.7%
#9🇧🇷 Brazil87.9%$1,6422.4%
#10🇨🇦 Canada89.9%$1,5402.2%
#11🇪🇸 Spain97.1%$1,3862.0%
#12🇲🇽 Mexico53.6%$6550.9%
#13🇰🇷 Korea, Republic of37.9%$6520.9%
#14🇦🇺 Australia41.4%$5880.8%
#15🇧🇪 Belgium102.0%$5430.8%
#16Netherlands52.4%$4790.7%
#17Argentina86.1%$4470.6%
#18Singapore113.6%$4140.6%
#19Greece184.9%$4040.6%
#20Austria73.8%$3370.5%
#21Indonesia30.1%$3080.4%
#22Portugal120.1%$2890.4%
#23Poland48.9%$2860.4%
#24Switzerland40.5%$2860.4%
#25Ireland63.7%$2440.4%
#26Russian Federation14.6%$2420.3%
#27Turkey30.2%$2330.3%
#28Egypt92.7%$2310.3%
#29Pakistan71.7%$2260.3%
#30Israel60.8%$2250.3%
#31Sweden38.5%$2140.3%
#32Thailand42.1%$2130.3%
#33South Africa56.7%$2090.3%
#34Taiwan Province of China35.1%$2070.3%
#35Malaysia55.6%$1990.3%
#36Venezuela182.4%$1800.3%
#37Norway40.0%$1740.3%
#38Colombia52.2%$1730.2%
#39Finland59.3%$1630.2%
#40Saudi Arabia19.0%$1490.2%
#41Iran32.2%$1440.2%
#42Vietnam55.6%$1340.2%
#43Philippines38.9%$1290.2%
#44Denmark34.3%$1210.2%
#45Hungary70.8%$1140.2%
#46Iraq49.3%$1110.2%
#47Nigeria27.3%$1090.2%
#48Bangladesh34.0%$98.10.14%
#49Angola89.0%$94.30.14%
#50Qatar48.6%$93.00.13%
#51Romania36.7%$87.90.13%
#52Lebanon151.0%$85.10.12%
#53Czech Republic32.6%$79.90.12%
#54United Arab Emirates19.1%$79.10.11%
#55Ukraine60.2%$78.80.11%
#56Morocco65.0%$77.00.11%
#57Chile25.6%$76.30.11%
#58Sri Lanka83.3%$74.10.11%
#59Sudan212.1%$72.70.10%
#60Algeria38.3%$66.50.10%
#61New Zealand29.8%$60.50.09%
#62Peru26.1%$58.80.08%
#63Puerto Rico55.5%$56.10.08%
#64Kenya60.1%$52.80.08%
#65Slovak Republic48.9%$52.10.08%
#66Ecuador45.8%$49.60.07%
#67Ethiopia61.0%$49.00.07%
#68Croatia74.6%$45.40.07%
#69Dominican Republic50.5%$43.20.06%
#70Oman53.4%$42.30.06%
#71Jordan94.4%$39.90.06%
#72Ghana59.3%$38.90.06%
#73Slovenia70.4%$38.10.05%
#74Uruguay63.5%$37.90.05%
#75Kazakhstan21.0%$36.30.05%
#76Bahrain94.7%$35.70.05%
#77Costa Rica53.5%$32.30.05%
#78Tunisia77.0%$30.70.04%
#79Belarus47.8%$28.50.04%
#80Serbia54.5%$27.50.04%
#81Myanmar38.2%$26.20.04%
#82Panama39.5%$25.70.04%
#83Cyprus102.5%$25.10.04%
#84Côte d'Ivoire53.2%$22.90.03%
#85Bolivia53.8%$21.80.03%
#86Tanzania37.3%$21.20.03%
#87Zambia78.1%$20.90.03%
#88Kuwait14.7%$20.80.03%
#89Guatemala24.7%$19.40.03%
#90Lithuania34.2%$18.20.03%
#91Syria30.0%$18.00.03%
#92Yemen64.8%$17.90.03%
#93El Salvador67.1%$17.50.03%
#94Cameroon39.1%$15.10.02%
#95Luxembourg21.4%$14.90.02%
#96Jamaica94.4%$14.60.02%
#97Senegal61.6%$14.50.02%
#98Mozambique99.8%$14.40.02%
#99Bulgaria20.4%$13.30.02%
#100Latvia35.9%$12.50.02%
#101Turkmenistan29.1%$11.90.02%
#102Uganda41.4%$11.60.02%
#103Albania69.9%$10.50.02%
#104Uzbekistan20.6%$10.40.02%
#105Lao P.D.R.57.2%$10.40.01%
#106Gabon60.7%$10.20.01%
#107Congo, Republic of87.8%$10.20.01%
#108Trinidad and Tobago45.1%$10.20.01%
#109Iceland37.6%$9.80.01%
#110Honduras40.2%$9.60.01%
#111Mauritius66.2%$9.40.01%
#112Paraguay21.5%$9.00.01%
#113Azerbaijan18.8%$8.80.01%
#114Nepal30.2%$8.80.01%
#115Papua New Guinea35.5%$8.20.01%
#116Bahamas, The63.3%$7.90.01%
#117Zimbabwe37.1%$7.80.01%
#118Georgia44.9%$7.30.01%
#119Congo, Dem. Rep. of the15.3%$7.20.01%
#120Cambodia28.6%$7.00.01%
#121Bosnia and Herzegovina34.3%$6.90.01%
#122Namibia45.8%$6.60.01%
#123Malta45.2%$6.60.01%
#124Mali37.3%$6.40.01%
#125Barbados125.7%$6.40.01%
#126Armenia51.3%$6.40.01%
#127Burkina Faso42.9%$6.10.01%
#128Equatorial Guinea43.3%$5.90.01%
#129Benin41.0%$5.90.01%
#130Madagascar45.7%$5.50.01%
#131Chad48.3%$5.30.01%
#132North Macedonia40.5%$5.10.01%
#133Niger53.8%$5.00.01%
#134Nicaragua37.2%$4.90.01%
#135Guinea38.2%$4.60.01%
#136Kyrgyz Republic56.0%$4.50.01%
#137Mauritania82.9%$4.30.01%
#138Malawi62.9%$4.30.01%
#139Togo76.2%$4.10.01%
#140Montenegro72.6%$4.00.01%
#141Rwanda40.7%$3.90.01%
#142Maldives68.0%$3.60.01%
#143Tajikistan47.9%$3.60.01%
#144Eritrea174.3%$3.50.01%
#145Moldova29.7%$3.40.00%
#146Haiti33.3%$3.20.00%
#147Bhutan102.4%$2.60.00%
#148Sierra Leone63.0%$2.60.00%
#149Estonia8.3%$2.60.00%
#150Fiji46.2%$2.60.00%
#151Suriname72.8%$2.50.00%
#152Cabo Verde124.5%$2.50.00%
#153Aruba84.5%$2.40.00%
#154Botswana12.1%$2.30.00%
#155Guyana52.9%$2.10.00%
#156Burundi58.4%$2.00.00%
#157South Sudan, Republic of42.2%$1.90.00%
#158Belize95.2%$1.80.00%
#159Eswatini35.2%$1.70.00%
#160Antigua and Barbuda89.5%$1.40.00%
#161Gambia, The86.6%$1.40.00%
#162Djibouti48.0%$1.40.00%
#163Afghanistan6.9%$1.40.00%
#164Kosovo17.0%$1.40.00%
#165Liberia39.9%$1.30.00%
#166San Marino77.9%$1.30.00%
#167Saint Lucia64.3%$1.20.00%
#168Lesotho44.5%$1.20.00%
#169Central African Republic49.9%$1.10.00%
#170Guinea-Bissau64.3%$0.90.00%
#171Seychelles56.9%$0.90.00%
#172Grenada63.5%$0.80.00%
#173Saint Vincent and the Grenadines74.5%$0.60.00%
#174Saint Kitts and Nevis60.5%$0.60.00%
#175Vanuatu51.4%$0.50.00%
#176Samoa50.3%$0.40.00%
#177Dominica74.1%$0.40.00%
#178Hong Kong SAR0.1%$0.40.00%
#179Brunei Darussalam2.6%$0.40.00%
#180São Tomé and Príncipe74.5%$0.30.00%
#181Comoros21.0%$0.20.00%
#182Timor-Leste6.1%$0.20.00%
#183Solomon Islands9.4%$0.10.00%
#184Micronesia, Fed. States of20.3%$0.10.00%
#185Nauru58.3%$0.10.00%
#186Marshall Islands25.2%$0.10.00%
#187Kiribati20.6%$0.00.00%
#188Tuvalu28.1%$0.00.00%

In absolute terms, the most indebted nation is the United States, which has a gross debt of $21.5 trillion according to the IMF as of 2018.

If you’re looking for a more precise figure for 2019, the U.S. government’s “Debt to the Penny” dataset puts the amount owing to exactly $23,015,089,744,090.63 as of November 12, 2019.

Of course, the U.S. is also the world’s largest economy in nominal terms, putting the debt to GDP ratio at 104.3%

Other stand outs from the list above include Japan, which has the highest debt to GDP ratio (237.1%), and China , which has increased government debt by almost $2 trillion in just the last two years. Meanwhile, the European economies of Italy and Belgium check the box as other large debtors with ratios topping 100% debt to GDP.

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Ranked: The World’s Top Diamond Mining Countries, by Carats and Value

Who are the leaders in rough diamond production and how much is their diamond output worth?

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A cropped chart showing the leaders in rough diamond mining and how much their diamond output is worth.

Ranked: World Diamond Mining By Country, Carat, and Value

Only 22 countries in the world engage in rough diamond production—also known as uncut, raw or natural diamonds—mining for them from deposits within their territories.

This chart, by Sam Parker illustrates the leaders in rough diamond production by weight and value. It uses data from Kimberly Process (an international certification organization) along with estimates by Dr. Ashok Damarupurshad, a precious metals and diamond specialist in South Africa.

Rough Diamond Production, By Weight

Russia takes the top spot as the world’s largest rough diamond producer, mining close to 42 million carats in 2022, well ahead of its peers.

ℹ️ Carat is the unit of measurement for the physical weight of diamonds. One carat equals 0.200 grams, which means it takes over 2,265 carats to equal 1 pound.

Russia’s large lead over second-place Botswana (24.8 million carats) and third-ranked Canada (16.2 million carats) indicates that the country’s diamond production is circumventing sanctions due to the difficulties in tracing a diamond’s origin.

Here’s a quick breakdown of rough diamond production in the world.

RankCountryRough Diamond
Production (Carats)
1🇷🇺 Russia41,923,910
2🇧🇼 Botswana24,752,967
3🇨🇦 Canada16,249,218
4🇨🇩 DRC9,908,998
5🇿🇦 South Africa9,660,233
6🇦🇴 Angola8,763,309
7🇿🇼 Zimbabwe4,461,450
8🇳🇦 Namibia2,054,227
9🇱🇸 Lesotho727,737
10🇸🇱 Sierra Leone688,970
11🇹🇿 Tanzania375,533
12🇧🇷 Brazil158,420
13🇬🇳 Guinea128,771
14🇨🇫 Central
African Republic
118,044
15🇬🇾 Guyana83,382
16🇬🇭 Ghana82,500
17🇱🇷 Liberia52,165
18🇨🇮 Cote D'Ivoire3,904
19🇨🇬 Republic of Congo3,534
20🇨🇲 Cameroon2,431
21🇻🇪 Venezuela1,665
22🇲🇱 Mali92
Total120,201,460

Note: South Africa’s figures are estimated.

As with most other resources, (oil, gold, uranium), rough diamond production is distributed unequally. The top 10 rough diamond producing countries by weight account for 99.2% of all rough diamonds mined in 2022.

Diamond Mining, by Country

However, higher carat mined doesn’t necessarily mean better value for the diamond. Other factors like the cut, color, and clarity also influence a diamond’s value.

Here’s a quick breakdown of diamond production by value (USD) in 2022.

RankCountryRough Diamond
Value (USD)
1🇧🇼 Botswana$4,975M
2🇷🇺 Russia$3,553M
3🇦🇴 Angola$1,965M
4🇨🇦 Canada$1,877M
5🇿🇦 South Africa$1,538M
6🇳🇦 Namibia$1,234M
7🇿🇼 Zimbabwe$424M
8🇱🇸 Lesotho$314M
9🇸🇱 Sierra Leone$143M
10🇹🇿 Tanzania$110M
11🇨🇩 DRC$65M
12🇧🇷 Brazil$30M
13🇱🇷 Liberia$18M
14🇨🇫 Central
African Republic
$15M
15🇬🇾 Guyana$14M
16🇬🇳 Guinea$6M
17🇬🇭 Ghana$3M
18🇨🇲 Cameroon$0.25M
19🇨🇬 Republic of Congo$0.20M
20🇨🇮 Cote D'Ivoire$0.16M
21🇻🇪 Venezuela$0.10M
22🇲🇱 Mali$0.06M
Total$16,290M

Note: South Africa’s figures are estimated. Furthermore, numbers have been rounded and may not sum to the total.

Thus, even though Botswana only produced 59% of Russia’s diamond weight in 2022, it had a trade value of nearly $5 billion, approximately 1.5 times higher than Russia’s for the same year.

Another example is Angola, which is ranked 6th in diamond production, but 3rd in diamond value.

Both countries (as well as South Africa, Canada, and Namibia) produce gem-quality rough diamonds versus countries like Russia and the DRC whose diamonds are produced mainly for industrial use.

Which Regions Produce the Most Diamonds in 2022?

Unsurprisingly, Africa is the largest rough diamond producing region, accounting for 51% of output by weight, and 66% by value.

RankRegionShare of Rough
Diamond Production (%)
Share of Rough
Diamond Value (%)
1Africa51.4%66.4%
2Europe34.9%32.9%
3North America13.5%52.8%
4South America0.2%2.4%

However diamond mining in Africa is a relatively recent phenomenon, fewer than 200 years old. Diamonds had been discovered—and prized—as far back as 2,000 years ago in India, later on spreading west to Egyptian pharaohs and the Roman Empire.

By the start of the 20th century, diamond production on a large scale took off: first in South Africa, and decades later in other African countries. In fact between 1889–1959, Africa produced 98% of the world’s diamonds.

And in the latter half of the 20th century, the term blood diamond evolved from diamonds mined in African conflict zones used to finance insurgency or crime.

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