Public debt to GDP ratio May reach 90%

 

India’s public debt to gross domestic product (GDP) is likely to increase to a record high of 89.3 per cent in 2020, breaking the previous high of 84.2 per cent in 2003.

The ratio was 72.3 per cent in 2019 and 68.8 per cent five years ago in 2015, according to the data from the International Monetary Fund World Economic Outlook (WEO). This makes India the most indebted major economy after Brazil and Argentina among the emerging markets.

In South Asia, India now becomes the most indebted country after Bhutan and Sri Lanka and worse off than Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Nepal.

According to the WEO database, Pakistan’s public debt to GDP is likely to be 87.2 per cent in 2020 while the ratio will be around 40 per cent in the case of Bangladesh and Nepal.

In per capita terms, every Indian has a debt of $1,674 against Bangladesh’s $748 and around $1,100 in the case of Pakistan.