The world national debt will soar to a record $71.6 trillion this year.
That's what the British-American asset manager Janus Henderson expects based on its annual public debt index published on Wednesday.
These will increase by 9.5 percent or $6.2 trillion this year.
The increase will be caused in particular by the United States, Japan and China.
According to the forecast, almost all countries are likely to take out further loans.
Markus Fruehauf
Editor in Business.
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The higher national debt occurs in an environment characterized by rising inflationary pressures and higher interest rates.
This means that the financing of the states will become more expensive, after having been carried out at historically favorable conditions in previous years through the bond purchases and low interest rate policy of the central banks.
According to Janus Henderson, the interest burden this year will increase by 14.5 percent to $1.16 trillion.
Since the outbreak of the pandemic, global public debt has increased by more than a quarter, from $52.2 trillion in January 2020 to an all-time high of $65.4 trillion in late 2021.
Debt master Germany
In all countries considered by Janus Henderson, debt increased in 2021.
China's debt has increased the fastest and most significantly in terms of cash, by $650 billion, or one-fifth.
Of the large industrialized countries, Germany recorded the largest percentage increase: Debt increased by 14.7 percent, almost twice as much as the global average.
"Fortunately, Germany has been able to benefit from significantly lower interest rates, so its debt service was just $21 billion in 2021," said Daniela Brogt, Janus Henderson's head of sales for Germany.
However, the interest burden will increase this year - because the negative yields that would have enabled the German state to issue bonds and receive money for them are increasingly a thing of the past.
"It is a risky time for a passive investor, but we see promising opportunities for the active investor."