Warnings of global debt build-up keep mounting

Tokyo

WORLDWIDE sovereign debt is set to reach a new high this year, international ratings agency S&P Global (formerly known as Standard & Poor's) has signalled in a report that adds to a growing chorus of warnings about a more general build-up of global debt.

Total debt among sovereign borrowers will continue to increase in 2017, rising by almost US$1 trillion or 2.3 per cent to US$44.3 trillion over 2016 levels at projected market exchange rates, S&P said in a report last Friday.

The United States at US$2.2 trillion and Japan at over US$1.8 trillion will again be the biggest sovereign borrowers this year, accounting for 60 per cent of the total borrowing, followed by China, Italy and France, said New…