Short-term debt in Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)
Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income): Short-term debt was 15.4% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Short-term debt in Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income), 1976–2024
Source: International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB). Measured in % of exports of goods, services and primary income.
Analysis
Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income) recorded 15.4% for short-term debt in 2024.
The figure is down 6.1% on the previous year and down 22.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, short-term debt in Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income) peaked at 86.3% in 1982 and was at its lowest, 12.7%, in 2008.
Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income) ranks 25th of 32 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Short-term debt in Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income), year by year
| Year | % of exports of goods, services and primary income | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 27.9% | — |
| 1977 | 44.2% | +58.6% |
| 1978 | 47.1% | +6.4% |
| 1979 | 47.9% | +1.8% |
| 1980 | 60.7% | +26.7% |
| 1981 | 70.3% | +15.9% |
| 1982 | 86.3% | +22.7% |
| 1983 | 50.8% | -41.1% |
| 1984 | 39.2% | -22.8% |
| 1985 | 34.2% | -12.9% |
| 1986 | 35.2% | +3.0% |
| 1987 | 37.0% | +5.3% |
| 1988 | 34.3% | -7.3% |
| 1989 | 41.9% | +21.9% |
| 1990 | 51.3% | +22.6% |
| 1991 | 58.9% | +14.7% |
| 1992 | 57.9% | -1.7% |
| 1993 | 64.6% | +11.7% |
| 1994 | 59.1% | -8.5% |
| 1995 | 56.2% | -4.9% |
| 1996 | 49.3% | -12.2% |
| 1997 | 47.0% | -4.7% |
| 1998 | 37.5% | -20.3% |
| 1999 | 33.1% | -11.6% |
| 2000 | 26.5% | -20.2% |
| 2001 | 22.9% | -13.5% |
| 2002 | 22.7% | -0.7% |
| 2003 | 23.6% | +3.6% |
| 2004 | 20.7% | -12.3% |
| 2005 | 19.3% | -6.7% |
| 2006 | 15.3% | -20.5% |
| 2007 | 15.6% | +2.1% |
| 2008 | 12.7% | -19.0% |
| 2009 | 15.6% | +23.1% |
| 2010 | 17.9% | +14.6% |
| 2011 | 14.5% | -18.7% |
| 2012 | 16.0% | +10.3% |
| 2013 | 18.5% | +15.3% |
| 2014 | 20.0% | +8.2% |
| 2015 | 22.8% | +14.0% |
| 2016 | 19.4% | -14.7% |
| 2017 | 18.0% | -7.2% |
| 2018 | 20.7% | +14.8% |
| 2019 | 21.3% | +3.0% |
| 2020 | 20.2% | -5.4% |
| 2021 | 17.1% | -15.5% |
| 2022 | 14.7% | -14.1% |
| 2023 | 16.4% | +11.9% |
| 2024 | 15.4% | -6.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 41.8% | 27.9% | 47.9% | 4 |
| 1980s | 49.0% | 34.2% | 86.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 51.5% | 33.1% | 64.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 19.5% | 12.7% | 26.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 18.9% | 14.5% | 22.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.8% | 14.7% | 20.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)
More economy & growth data for Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)
- Households and NPISHs Final consumption expenditure (current US$) 7,260 current US$ per person (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$) 2.11 % change on previous year (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$) 0.138 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$) 1,436 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Households and NPISHs Final consumption expenditure (current US$) 4.18 % change on previous year (2025)
- Households and NPISHs Final consumption expenditure (current US$) 0.6975 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Households and NPISHs Final consumption expenditure (constant 2015) 0.5838 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Final consumption expenditure (current US$), annual growth rate 4.06 % change on previous year (2025)
- Households and NPISHs Final consumption expenditure (constant 2015) 6,076 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current US$), per 1,706 current US$ per person (2025)
All data for Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income) →
Frequently asked questions
- What is short-term debt in Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)?
- Short-term debt in Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income) was 15.4% in 2024, according to International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB).
- What is the highest short-term debt recorded in Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)?
- The highest recorded value was 86.3% in 1982.
- What is the lowest short-term debt recorded in Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.7% in 2008.
- How does Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income) rank for short-term debt?
- Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income) ranks 25th out of 32 groups with data for 2024.
- Is short-term debt rising or falling in Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)?
- Over the last ten years it is down 22.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income) data come from?
- The figures come from International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB), published as part of Short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Short-term external debt is defined as debt that has an original maturity of one year or less. Available data permit no distinction between public and private nonguaranteed short-term debt. Exports of goods, services and primary income is the sum of goods (merchandise) exports, exports of (nonfactor) services and income (factor) receipts.