How far in debt is France?
In 2022, the national debt of France amounted to around 2.88 trillion U.S. dollars. For comparison, the Greek debt amounted to approximately 392.27 billion euros that same year. France currently has one of the highest national debt levels of any of the world's nations.
In 2021, public debt in France represented 112.5 percent of the country's GDP. According to the source, public debt in France is supposed to remain stable in the upcoming years.
French trade balance in 2023: the deficit is narrowing, including in volume terms. According to our estimate, the trade deficit (on trade in goods) stood at almost EUR 101 billion in 2023, down from 165 billion in 2022, but still up from 86 billion in 2021.
At the close of the third quarter of 2023, Greece topped the list with a staggering 165.5 percent debt to GDP ratio. It was followed by Italy (140.6 percent), France (111.9 percent), Spain (109.8 percent), Belgium (108 percent) and Portugal (107.5 percent).
Over half of French debt is owned by foreign entities, including 15% owned by the European Central Bank (ECB). This one is fairly straightforward to grasp, as central banks and foreign investment funds routinely lend money to governments.
Singapore is one of Asia's major financial centers. It is also one of the most prosperous countries on the planet. And all this has been achieved without taking on any meaningful public debt. In fact, very much like Norway, Singapore has more assets than debt.
Japan and China have been the largest foreign holders of US debt for the last two decades. Japan and China held almost 50% of all foreign-owned US debt between 2004 and 2006. However, this has declined over time, and as of 2022 they controlled approximately 25% of foreign-owned debt.
In 1795, the United States was finally able to settle its debts with the French Government with the help of James Swan, an American banker who privately assumed French debts at a slightly higher interest rate. Swan then resold these debts at a profit on domestic U.S. markets.
Jessica Hinds, economist at Capital Economics, said there are two main reasons why France has posted high levels of debt: It runs persistent primary budget deficits and its sluggish economic growth has made it harder for the government to reduce the debt burden.
Summary. France is one of the oldest U.S. allies, dating to 1778 when the French monarchy recognized the independence of the United States. French military and economic assistance during the American War of Independence (1775-81) was crucial to the American victory.
What war put France in debt?
The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) brought great financial burdens on Great Britain, Kingdom of Prussia, Austria, France, and Sweden.
Imports The top imports of France are Petroleum Gas ($61.9B), Cars ($37.3B), Refined Petroleum ($34.3B), Crude Petroleum ($32.3B), and Packaged Medicaments ($17.6B), importing mostly from Germany ($120B), Belgium ($71.1B), Spain ($65.2B), Italy ($63.8B), and Netherlands ($59.9B).
The later years of Louis XV's reign saw some economic setbacks. While the Seven Years' War, 1756–1763, led to an increase in the royal debt and the loss of nearly all of France's North American possessions, it was not until 1775 that the French economy began to truly enter a state of crisis.
By comparison, the U.S. reported a national debt of $34 trillion (31 trillion euros) during the third quarter of 2023, roughly 123% of the nation's GDP and an increase from the previous quarter. Estonia reported the lowest debt in the EU, at 18% of its GDP, followed by Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Sweden and Denmark.
Tourism is a major contributor to the economy – France generally tops lists of most visited countries. Other major economic sectors include industry, agriculture, energy and defense. The country is one of the world's top exporters of weapons.
It took a lot of fighting and intrigue (e.g. Hundred Years war) but at the end of this 1,000 year era, France was a single country, the biggest one in Western Europe. French kings also managed to expand a little towards the Alps and the Rhine by the end of the Middle Ages by preying on weak neighbors.
Other European states fol- lowed in the seventeenth century, including Prussia in 1683, though France and Spain remained the leading defaulters, with a total of eight defaults and six defaults, respectively, between the sixteenth and the end of the eighteenth centuries (Reinhart, Rogoff, and Savastano 2003).
Public debt in Russia averaged 15.4% of GDP in the decade to 2022, below the average of 32.5% of GDP for Eastern Europe. Public debt in Russia was 18.9% of GDP in 2022.
Years of elevated budget deficits, exacerbated by massive federal spending during the COVID-19 pandemic, have taken the debt to historic levels: totaling more than $26 trillion in 2023, U.S. federal government debt is now at its highest percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) since World War II.
China is one of the United States's largest creditors, owning about $859.4 billion in U.S. debt. 1 However, it does not own the most U.S. debt of any foreign country. Nations borrowing from each other may be as old as the concept of money.
What is the safest country in the world?
Iceland is the safest country in the world, according to the latest Global Peace Index (GPI) ranking of 2023. The measurements target societal safety and security, domestic and international conflict, and militarization through 23 specific indicators.
In total, other territories hold about $7.4 trillion in U.S. debt. Japan owns the most at $1.1 trillion, followed by China, with $859 billion, and the United Kingdom at $668 billion.
The National Debt Explained
money from federal income tax), a budget deficit results. To pay for this deficit, the federal government borrows money by selling marketable securities such as Treasury bonds , bills , notes , floating rate notes , and Treasury inflation-protected securities (TIPS) .
The United States provides no development assistance to France. France is a member of the European Union and is the United States' third-largest trading partner in Europe (after Germany and the U.K.). Trade and investment between the United States and France are strong.
The United States remained neutral, as both Federalists and Democratic-Republicans saw that war would lead to economic disaster and the possibility of invasion. This policy was made difficult by heavy-handed British and French actions.
