Short-term debt in Low & middle income

Low & middle income: Short-term debt was 26.8% in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
26.8%
Change on year
up 1.4%
Rank
4th
of 12 groups
All-time high
32.6%
in 2013
All-time low
10.7%
in 1987
Years of data
55
1970–2024

Short-term debt in Low & middle income, 1970–2024

101520253035197019972024

Source: International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB). Measured in % of total external debt.

Analysis

Low & middle income recorded 26.8% for short-term debt in 2024.

That represents a change of up 1.4% on the previous year and down 16.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, short-term debt in Low & middle income peaked at 32.6% in 2013 and was at its lowest, 10.7%, in 1987.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.

Short-term debt in Low & middle income, year by year

Annual values for Short-term debt (% of total external debt) in Low & middle income, 1970 to 2024.
Year % of total external debt Change
1970 12.0%
1971 11.9% -1.1%
1972 11.9% +0.4%
1973 11.9% +0.0%
1974 11.9% -0.2%
1975 12.0% +0.7%
1976 12.3% +2.3%
1977 19.0% +54.6%
1978 17.8% -6.1%
1979 17.5% -1.8%
1980 19.7% +12.6%
1981 20.5% +3.9%
1982 21.1% +2.8%
1983 15.5% -26.4%
1984 14.9% -4.0%
1985 13.6% -8.3%
1986 11.6% -15.2%
1987 10.7% -7.2%
1988 11.3% +5.3%
1989 12.6% +11.4%
1990 14.8% +17.4%
1991 15.9% +7.9%
1992 17.4% +9.1%
1993 18.5% +6.3%
1994 17.2% -6.7%
1995 18.6% +7.9%
1996 19.1% +2.5%
1997 18.8% -1.2%
1998 15.2% -19.2%
1999 14.0% -7.8%
2000 13.4% -4.3%
2001 14.2% +6.0%
2002 14.1% -1.3%
2003 15.5% +10.4%
2004 17.1% +10.0%
2005 20.0% +17.0%
2006 21.6% +7.9%
2007 22.2% +2.8%
2008 20.4% -7.9%
2009 20.9% +2.5%
2010 28.3% +35.4%
2011 31.0% +9.4%
2012 30.1% -2.9%
2013 32.6% +8.2%
2014 32.2% -1.1%
2015 26.0% -19.2%
2016 24.3% -6.6%
2017 26.4% +8.5%
2018 27.6% +4.6%
2019 26.5% -3.9%
2020 25.3% -4.6%
2021 25.7% +1.6%
2022 26.0% +1.3%
2023 26.4% +1.6%
2024 26.8% +1.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 13.8% 11.9% 19.0% 10
1980s 15.1% 10.7% 21.1% 10
1990s 17.0% 14.0% 19.1% 10
2000s 17.9% 13.4% 22.2% 10
2010s 28.5% 24.3% 32.6% 10
2020s 26.0% 25.3% 26.8% 5

Countries ranked near Low & middle income

  1. 1 Mauritius 54.8% compare
  2. 2 China 54.0% compare
  3. 3 Somalia 41.8% compare
  4. 4 Tunisia 39.4% compare
  5. 5 Jordan 38.1% compare
  6. 6 Thailand 36.2% compare
  7. 7 Kosovo 35.6% compare

See the full ranking of 133 places →

More external debt data for Low & middle income

All data for Low & middle income →

Frequently asked questions

What is short-term debt in Low & middle income?
Short-term debt in Low & middle income was 26.8% in 2024, according to International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB).
What is the highest short-term debt recorded in Low & middle income?
The highest recorded value was 32.6% in 2013.
What is the lowest short-term debt recorded in Low & middle income?
The lowest recorded value was 10.7% in 1987.
How does Low & middle income rank for short-term debt?
Low & middle income ranks 4th out of 12 groups with data for 2024.
Is short-term debt rising or falling in Low & middle income?
Over the last ten years it is down 16.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Low & middle income data come from?
The figures come from International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB), published as part of Short-term debt (% of total external debt). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Short-term debt in Low & middle income. Statizoid, drawing on International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB). Retrieved 01 September 2026, from https://debt.statizoid.com/stat/short-term-debt-percent-of-total-external-debt/low-and-middle-income/

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About this data

Indicator
Short-term debt (% of total external debt)
Unit
% of total external debt
Source
International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
133 places, 6,524 data points, 1970–2024
Last refreshed

Short-term debt includes all debt having an original maturity of one year or less and interest in arrears on long-term debt. Total external debt is debt owed to nonresidents repayable in currency, goods, or services. Total external debt is the sum of public, publicly guaranteed, and private nonguaranteed long-term debt, use of IMF credit, and short-term debt.