Outstanding international public debt securities to GDP (%) in Canada
Canada: Outstanding international public debt securities to GDP (%) was 9.3% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Outstanding international public debt securities to GDP in Canada, 1980–2020
Source: Bank for International Settlements (BIS). Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, outstanding international public debt securities to gdp in Canada stood at 9.3%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 21.4% on the previous year and up 29.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, outstanding international public debt securities to gdp in Canada peaked at 15.9% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 5.1%, in 2008.
Canada ranks 57th of 116 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 41 years of available data.
Outstanding international public debt securities to GDP (%) in Canada, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 5.2% | — |
| 1981 | 5.6% | +7.9% |
| 1982 | 6.8% | +20.7% |
| 1983 | 6.8% | +0.2% |
| 1984 | 7.0% | +2.6% |
| 1985 | 7.5% | +8.3% |
| 1986 | 9.4% | +24.8% |
| 1987 | 8.8% | -6.3% |
| 1988 | 7.6% | -13.6% |
| 1989 | 6.6% | -12.9% |
| 1990 | 7.0% | +5.5% |
| 1991 | 8.1% | +16.0% |
| 1992 | 9.4% | +15.8% |
| 1993 | 12.3% | +30.6% |
| 1994 | 14.8% | +20.8% |
| 1995 | 15.6% | +5.5% |
| 1996 | 15.0% | -3.8% |
| 1997 | 14.0% | -7.1% |
| 1998 | 15.9% | +13.7% |
| 1999 | 14.5% | -8.7% |
| 2000 | 11.6% | -19.7% |
| 2001 | 11.3% | -3.2% |
| 2002 | 11.4% | +0.9% |
| 2003 | 9.9% | -12.8% |
| 2004 | 8.6% | -12.9% |
| 2005 | 7.5% | -13.6% |
| 2006 | 6.6% | -11.8% |
| 2007 | 5.9% | -10.9% |
| 2008 | 5.1% | -13.4% |
| 2009 | 7.2% | +41.6% |
| 2010 | 7.2% | -0.0% |
| 2011 | 6.8% | -5.0% |
| 2012 | 7.1% | +3.8% |
| 2013 | 6.8% | -3.4% |
| 2014 | 6.9% | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 7.4% | +7.4% |
| 2016 | 7.3% | -1.1% |
| 2017 | 7.9% | +7.8% |
| 2018 | 7.5% | -4.9% |
| 2019 | 7.6% | +1.7% |
| 2020 | 9.3% | +21.4% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 9.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 8.7%, 1.1× the median. (54 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 7.1% | 5.2% | 9.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 12.7% | 7.0% | 15.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 8.5% | 5.1% | 11.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.3% | 6.8% | 7.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.3% | 9.3% | 9.3% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More financial sector data for Canada
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, annual growth rate 6.08 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0017 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per capita 93.62 units per person (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, annual growth rate 1.02 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0012 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per capita 68.36 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, annual growth rate 6.08 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0017 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per capita 93.62 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, SDR, annual growth rate 1.02 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is outstanding international public debt securities to gdp in Canada?
- Outstanding international public debt securities to gdp in Canada was 9.3% in 2020, according to Bank for International Settlements (BIS).
- What is the highest outstanding international public debt securities to gdp recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 15.9% in 1998.
- What is the lowest outstanding international public debt securities to gdp recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.1% in 2008.
- How does Canada rank for outstanding international public debt securities to gdp?
- Canada ranks 57th out of 116 countries with data for 2020.
- Is outstanding international public debt securities to gdp rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is up 29.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from Bank for International Settlements (BIS), published as part of Outstanding international public debt securities to GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Amount of public international debt securities (amounts outstanding), as a share of GDP. It covers long-term bonds and notes and money market instruments placed on international markets. Table 12D (international debt amount): governments / GDP. End of year data (i.e. December data) are considered for debt securities. The figures are deflated using the following methodology: {(0.5)*[Ft/P_et + Ft-1/P_et-1]}/[GDPt/P_at] where F is the level international public debt, P_e is end-of period CPI, and P_a is average annual CPI. GDP is from World Development Indicators. End-of period CPI is taken from IFS line 64M..ZF month of December (or if not available Q4). Average annual CPI is constructed from the monthly CPI figure taken from IFS line 64..ZF.