The figure of the week. The stock of public debt amounted to 61,000 billion dollars in OECD countries at the end of last year.
According to the 2026 edition of the “Global Debt Report” just published by the OECD, the total stock of debt from states and private sector companies reached a record amount of around 109,000 billion dollars last year. In developing countries, the outstanding public debt, known as sovereign, reached an all-time high of 61,000 billion dollars at the end of 2025, compared to 55,000 billion dollars a year earlier.
By type of borrowing, fixed-rate bonds represent approximately 76% of the total stock, followed by treasury bills (about 15%), inflation-linked securities (about 8%), and variable-rate debt (about 2%).
In 2025, the ratio of public debt to GDP for OECD countries remained stable at 83%, but is expected to rise to 85% this year, which is 39 percentage points higher than in 2007, before the global subprime financial crisis.
The refinancing needs of sovereign debt reached a record level of around 13,500 billion dollars in OECD countries, up from USD 12,000 billion in 2024, and are projected to increase by an additional USD 1,000 billion in 2026, representing 19% of the GDP. The United States and Japan alone account for nearly 80% of the total. “However, while Japan’s share decreased from 16% in 2020 to 7% in 2025, that of the United States increased from 57% to 70%,” notes the report.
In emerging countries, sovereign bond issuances also reached a record level in 2025, at 3,400 billion dollars, 21% higher than in 2024, bringing the total outstanding public debt to 12,100 billion dollars, an unprecedented amount.
Finally, borrowings issued on financial markets by private sector companies reached an unprecedented volume of 13,700 billion dollars in 2025, bringing their total debt stock to 59,500 billion dollars, with 36,400 billion in bonds and 23,100 billion in syndicated loans. “Given the significant investment expenditure required to finance AI development, corporate borrowing needs are expected to continue to grow significantly in the future,” highlights the OECD report.
