Interest payments in OECD members
OECD members: Interest payments was 4.6% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Interest payments in OECD members, 1972–2023
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of expense.
Analysis
The most recent figure for interest payments in OECD members is 4.6%, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 39.4% on the previous year and down 17.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, interest payments in OECD members peaked at 11.3% in 1988 and was at its lowest, 2.8%, in 2021.
That places OECD members 32nd out of 39 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 52 years of available data.
Interest payments in OECD members, year by year
| Year | % of expense | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 3.5% | — |
| 1973 | 3.7% | +7.4% |
| 1974 | 3.8% | +1.0% |
| 1975 | 4.0% | +6.3% |
| 1976 | 4.5% | +11.2% |
| 1977 | 5.2% | +16.7% |
| 1978 | 5.8% | +11.2% |
| 1979 | 6.7% | +15.3% |
| 1980 | 7.2% | +8.2% |
| 1981 | 7.4% | +2.7% |
| 1982 | 7.0% | -5.0% |
| 1983 | 7.2% | +1.9% |
| 1984 | 8.0% | +10.9% |
| 1985 | 9.4% | +18.1% |
| 1986 | 10.4% | +10.6% |
| 1987 | 10.8% | +4.2% |
| 1988 | 11.3% | +4.1% |
| 1989 | 10.3% | -8.3% |
| 1990 | 10.6% | +2.3% |
| 1991 | 10.0% | -4.9% |
| 1992 | 10.0% | -0.3% |
| 1993 | 9.3% | -6.8% |
| 1994 | 9.6% | +3.3% |
| 1995 | 8.6% | -10.5% |
| 1996 | 8.6% | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 9.5% | +9.6% |
| 1998 | 9.0% | -4.9% |
| 1999 | 7.8% | -13.8% |
| 2000 | 7.5% | -3.1% |
| 2001 | 6.8% | -9.7% |
| 2002 | 6.0% | -11.2% |
| 2003 | 5.7% | -4.9% |
| 2004 | 5.6% | -1.7% |
| 2005 | 5.3% | -6.7% |
| 2006 | 5.1% | -3.8% |
| 2007 | 5.0% | -1.4% |
| 2008 | 5.4% | +8.4% |
| 2009 | 4.6% | -15.5% |
| 2010 | 4.7% | +2.7% |
| 2011 | 5.8% | +23.1% |
| 2012 | 5.8% | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 5.6% | -3.2% |
| 2014 | 5.4% | -2.8% |
| 2015 | 5.2% | -3.5% |
| 2016 | 4.7% | -9.6% |
| 2017 | 4.3% | -9.0% |
| 2018 | 4.0% | -6.1% |
| 2019 | 3.8% | -6.9% |
| 2020 | 3.2% | -15.2% |
| 2021 | 2.8% | -12.9% |
| 2022 | 3.3% | +18.9% |
| 2023 | 4.6% | +39.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 4.6% | 3.5% | 6.7% | 8 |
| 1980s | 8.9% | 7.0% | 11.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 9.3% | 7.8% | 10.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.7% | 4.6% | 7.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.9% | 3.8% | 5.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.5% | 2.8% | 4.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near OECD members
- 29 Iceland 14.7% compare
- 30 Fiji 14.6% compare
- 31 South Africa 14.3% compare
- 32 Côte d'Ivoire 14.1% compare
- 33 Namibia 14.1% compare
- 34 El Salvador 14.1% compare
- 35 Panama 13.4% compare
More public sector data for OECD members
- Arms imports 11.87 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 8.5 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0002 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 26.58 % change on previous year (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 11.87 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 1,238 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0253 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate 12.54 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 1.73 trillion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 265.52 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is interest payments in OECD members?
- Interest payments in OECD members was 4.6% in 2023, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest interest payments recorded in OECD members?
- The highest recorded value was 11.3% in 1988.
- What is the lowest interest payments recorded in OECD members?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.8% in 2021.
- How does OECD members rank for interest payments?
- OECD members ranks 32nd out of 39 groups with data for 2023.
- Is interest payments rising or falling in OECD members?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this OECD members data come from?
- The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Interest payments (% of expense). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Interest payments include interest payments on government debt (including long-term bonds, long-term loans, and other debt instruments) to domestic and foreign residents. This indicator is expressed as percentage of total expenses which is any decrease in net worth resulting from a transaction.