Which countries owe the united states money

Even though Japan holds the biggest amount of U. Debts and investments are reciprocal relationships. Debts are often created as a natural part of doing international business. Still, speculative reports by the Congressional Budget Office in indicate that America needs to cut back its debts in general.

Citizens will either have to pay more for their government, accept less in government services and benefits, or both. Many economists dismiss concerns that are raised in that area. In fact, the Department of Defense agreed with this in , when they made a report to analyze the national security risks that U.

Treasury securities as a coercive tool would have limited effect and likely would do more harm to China than to the United States. Using this infographic, you can see which countries owe the U. Get the facts for yourself right here! The key to enjoying personal financial health is by making the most of the money you have. It always helps to save a little more, spend a little less, and manage what you have today.

With 1. China is also the foreign country that owns the second-most U. The question is: Is it bad for the U. Sure, either side could have launched its warheads and inflicted terrible damage on the enemy, but an act of aggression would have ensured an equally punishing retaliation.

If China wanted to economically injure the U. But the Chinese would also shoot themselves in the foot. The Chinese have close to half of their cash reserves invested in U. For China , it's the safest, best investment the growing nation can make. China's economic growth is fueled partly by the return on their U. Poisoning the dollar would take the yuan right down with it [source: Capaccio ]. We've been talking a lot about America's debt problem, but how does U.

The most useful debt measurement is to calculate the ratio of public debt to gross domestic product GDP. At the end of , U. And while was the year the COVID pandemic ruined economies around the globe, that figure wasn't a huge anomaly, as it was Although a How can the Japanese economy support such a lopsided debt-to-earnings ratio?

It turns out that Japan's debt, while incredibly high, is not unsustainable. The Japanese economy is still very strong. It boasts the world's third-largest GDP, and unemployment was a mere 2.

The country is also heavily invested in U. But the biggest difference between Japanese and American debt is that Japanese citizens own 90 percent of their country's debt, with only 10 percent in the hands of foreigners. In contrast, more than 40 percent of U. The country the United States is most indebted to is As of December , here are some of the domestic investors who owned U.

Treasury Securities [source: U. Department of the Treasury ]:. Why would individual Americans, businesses and local governments continue to loan money to the United States?

Believe it or not, investing in the government isn't a high-risk proposition. While the federal government is hemorrhaging thousands of dollars by the second in order to pay interest on its debts, the U. America's credit rating would drop, and the booming market for U.

How would the U. Let's hope we never find out. Sign up for our Newsletter! Mobile Newsletter banner close. Mobile Newsletter chat close. Mobile Newsletter chat dots.

Mobile Newsletter chat avatar. Mobile Newsletter chat subscribe. Political Issues. Top 10 Countries the U. Owes Money To. A jumble of street signs in a Taiwan street. Taiwan gets most of its income from trade and, as a hedge against the hard times, it invests in U. The flower carpet at the Grande-Place, Belgium. Despite its small size, Belgium's reputation as an international banking center means lots of financial transactions reside here.

A glimpse of the Sao Paulo city center. Brazil is the world's ninth largest economy. Despite its small physical size, Switzerland manages more financial assets than any other country. This is the highest level of debt owned by Japan in several years, beating out China as the largest holder of U.

The increase in Japan's holdings is its largest since The low and negative yield market in Japan makes holding U. China gets a lot of attention for holding a big chunk of the U. China takes the second spot among foreign holders of U. It currently holds The United Kingdom has increased its holdings in U. It would appear odd that Ireland is the fourth-largest holder of U. However, a big factor in Ireland's place is the fact that many U.

Dublin is a focal point for international fund management but also represents the European branches of U. However, there has been a drop in Ireland's U. Luxembourg is the fifth-largest holder of U.

Treasuries, equal to about 3. Government Accountability Office. Department of Treasury. Treasury Bonds. Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for Investopedia. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page. These choices will be signaled globally to our partners and will not affect browsing data.

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