Outstanding international public debt securities to GDP (%) in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Outstanding international public debt securities to GDP (%) was 0.8% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Outstanding international public debt securities to GDP in United Kingdom, 1980–2020
Source: Bank for International Settlements (BIS). Measured in %.
Analysis
United Kingdom recorded 0.8% for outstanding international public debt securities to gdp in 2020.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 12.5% on the previous year and down 7.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, outstanding international public debt securities to gdp in United Kingdom peaked at 1.0% in 1996 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1990.
That places United Kingdom 102nd out of 116 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Outstanding international public debt securities to GDP (%) in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 0.1% | — |
| 1981 | 0.1% | -20.1% |
| 1982 | 0.1% | +5.0% |
| 1983 | 0.1% | -1.3% |
| 1984 | 0.1% | +6.1% |
| 1985 | 0.5% | +549.9% |
| 1986 | 0.4% | -18.6% |
| 1987 | 0.3% | -21.1% |
| 1988 | 0.0% | -98.7% |
| 1989 | 0.0% | -53.4% |
| 1990 | 0.0% | -68.8% |
| 1991 | 0.3% | +50382.9% |
| 1992 | 0.8% | +155.5% |
| 1993 | 0.9% | +5.5% |
| 1994 | 0.9% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 0.8% | -10.6% |
| 1996 | 1.0% | +26.8% |
| 1997 | 0.6% | -34.8% |
| 1998 | 0.7% | +12.4% |
| 1999 | 0.7% | -7.5% |
| 2000 | 0.7% | -0.4% |
| 2001 | 0.2% | -69.1% |
| 2002 | 0.0% | -88.6% |
| 2003 | 0.2% | +618.0% |
| 2004 | 0.1% | -14.1% |
| 2005 | 0.1% | -6.2% |
| 2006 | 0.1% | -4.7% |
| 2007 | 0.1% | -12.2% |
| 2008 | 0.0% | -88.6% |
| 2009 | 0.0% | +34.5% |
| 2010 | 0.8% | +4641.7% |
| 2011 | 0.8% | -6.9% |
| 2012 | 0.8% | +4.1% |
| 2013 | 0.8% | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 0.7% | -7.4% |
| 2015 | 0.7% | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 0.7% | -7.0% |
| 2017 | 0.7% | +8.5% |
| 2018 | 0.7% | -10.9% |
| 2019 | 0.7% | +2.7% |
| 2020 | 0.8% | +12.5% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 0.8% is below the median for high income countries, which is 8.7%, 9% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 0.8% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 6.8%, 11% of the median. (42 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Outstanding international public debt securities to GDP (%) in United Kingdom changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | +50382.9% | 0.0% | 0.3% |
| 2010 | +4641.7% | 0.0% | 0.8% |
| 2003 | +618.0% | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| 1985 | +549.9% | 0.1% | 0.5% |
| 1992 | +155.5% | 0.3% | 0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.7% | 0.0% | 1.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 1 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More financial sector data for United Kingdom
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, annual growth rate 10.56 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0018 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, US dollar, per capita 104.99 units per person (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, annual growth rate 5.29 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0013 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve position in the IMF, SDR, per capita 76.66 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, annual growth rate 10.56 % change on previous year (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0018 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, US dollar, per capita 104.99 units per person (2025)
- Reserve tranche position, SDR, annual growth rate 5.29 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is outstanding international public debt securities to gdp in United Kingdom?
- Outstanding international public debt securities to gdp in United Kingdom was 0.8% in 2020, according to Bank for International Settlements (BIS).
- What is the highest outstanding international public debt securities to gdp recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 1.0% in 1996.
- What is the lowest outstanding international public debt securities to gdp recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1990.
- How does United Kingdom rank for outstanding international public debt securities to gdp?
- United Kingdom ranks 102nd out of 116 countries with data for 2020.
- Is outstanding international public debt securities to gdp rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this United Kingdom 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 41 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
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.