The United States (U.S.)’ national debt has crossed 100 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), reaching 100.2 percent by March’s end, per Bureau of Economic Analysis data.
Publicly held debt stood at $31.27 trillion on March 31 against $31.22 trillion in trailing 12-month GDP, edging debt just above economic output. The fiscal 2025 year-end ratio in September registered 99.5 percent.
This milestone nears the post-World War II high of roughly 106 percent GDP.
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Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said the rise in borrowing reflects political inaction rather than crisis-driven spending. She said the increase did not stem from “a seismic global conflict, but rather a total bipartisan abdication of making hard choices.” “It’s happened — the national debt is now larger than the U.S. economy, about twice the historic average,” she said in a statement. “We’ve heard plenty of alarm bells in the past few years about our fiscal path, but this one rings especially loudly. The real question is whether or not our leaders in Washington will listen.”
Treasury Department figures last month pegged total U.S. national debt above $39 trillion—a fresh peak just five months past the $38 trillion threshold.
Federal spending currently runs $1.33 per revenue dollar collected, with this year’s budget deficit eyed at $1.9 trillion, per Wall Street Journal reporting.
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