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Colombia’s external debt grew to record levels in 2014: Central Bank

by | Feb 5, 2015

Colombia’s external debt continues to balloon at a pace far more rapid than the country’s GDP growth, according to the central bank.

Colombia’s external debt grew by 10% during 2014, hitting more than $100 billion for the first time ever, and doubling the GDP growth rate during the same period.

The South American nation’s Central Bank have released a report outlining Colombia’s external debt figures up to October 2014.

Viewed another way, total external debt is now equivalent to 25.81% of Colombia’s GDP, a level not seen in 10 years.

Colombia’s external debt

This figure takes into consideration the IMF’s 2014 GDP estimation of $388 billion for Colombia against the Central Bank’s newly released external debt figures.

A nation’s debt to GDP ratio is important as it compares a nation’s production to the amount that it owes, meaning that a country with a higher debt to GDP ratio will generally require more time to pay back foreign loans.

Colombia’s total external debt contains approximately 60% in public debt and 40% in private debt.

Public debt increased approximately 15% during 2014 and private debt went up just 4% when compared to the previous year.

The World Bank defines total external debt as the “debt owed to nonresidents repayable in currency, goods, or services.”

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