Interest payments in OECD members
OECD members: Interest payments was 4.5% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Interest payments in OECD members, 1972–2024
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of revenue.
Analysis
In 2024, interest payments in OECD members stood at 4.5%.
The figure is up 10.7% on the previous year and down 19.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, interest payments in OECD members peaked at 10.9% in 1986 and was at its lowest, 3.0%, in 1972.
That places OECD members 32nd out of 39 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 53 years of available data.
Interest payments in OECD members, year by year
| Year | % of revenue | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 3.0% | — |
| 1973 | 3.3% | +10.6% |
| 1974 | 3.2% | -3.0% |
| 1975 | 3.6% | +11.3% |
| 1976 | 4.3% | +21.6% |
| 1977 | 4.8% | +11.5% |
| 1978 | 5.4% | +11.2% |
| 1979 | 6.6% | +21.9% |
| 1980 | 7.4% | +12.1% |
| 1981 | 6.9% | -6.4% |
| 1982 | 6.6% | -4.2% |
| 1983 | 7.3% | +10.5% |
| 1984 | 8.6% | +17.4% |
| 1985 | 10.9% | +26.8% |
| 1986 | 10.9% | +0.2% |
| 1987 | 10.6% | -2.3% |
| 1988 | 10.5% | -1.2% |
| 1989 | 10.0% | -4.8% |
| 1990 | 10.0% | -0.3% |
| 1991 | 9.8% | -1.9% |
| 1992 | 9.8% | +0.6% |
| 1993 | 9.8% | -0.5% |
| 1994 | 9.9% | +1.5% |
| 1995 | 10.1% | +1.2% |
| 1996 | 10.1% | +0.4% |
| 1997 | 10.2% | +1.4% |
| 1998 | 9.6% | -6.4% |
| 1999 | 8.0% | -16.2% |
| 2000 | 7.7% | -4.8% |
| 2001 | 6.6% | -14.0% |
| 2002 | 6.5% | -1.5% |
| 2003 | 6.0% | -7.6% |
| 2004 | 5.8% | -3.0% |
| 2005 | 5.0% | -13.3% |
| 2006 | 4.4% | -12.7% |
| 2007 | 4.4% | +0.6% |
| 2008 | 5.7% | +29.3% |
| 2009 | 5.4% | -5.2% |
| 2010 | 5.5% | +2.2% |
| 2011 | 6.0% | +8.7% |
| 2012 | 6.0% | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 5.8% | -3.0% |
| 2014 | 5.6% | -3.7% |
| 2015 | 5.1% | -9.4% |
| 2016 | 4.8% | -5.4% |
| 2017 | 4.1% | -14.1% |
| 2018 | 3.9% | -5.0% |
| 2019 | 3.7% | -5.5% |
| 2020 | 3.7% | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 3.2% | -13.8% |
| 2022 | 3.4% | +6.6% |
| 2023 | 4.1% | +19.3% |
| 2024 | 4.5% | +10.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 4.3% | 3.0% | 6.6% | 8 |
| 1980s | 9.0% | 6.6% | 10.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 9.7% | 8.0% | 10.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.7% | 4.4% | 7.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.1% | 3.7% | 6.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.8% | 3.2% | 4.5% | 5 |
Countries ranked near OECD members
- 29 Iceland 14.9% compare
- 30 Namibia 14.7% compare
- 31 El Salvador 14.3% compare
- 32 Papua New Guinea 14.2% compare
- 33 Seychelles 14.1% compare
- 34 Togo 14.0% compare
- 35 Colombia 13.9% 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 4.5% in 2024, 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 10.9% in 1986.
- What is the lowest interest payments recorded in OECD members?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.0% in 1972.
- How does OECD members rank for interest payments?
- OECD members ranks 32nd out of 39 groups with data for 2024.
- Is interest payments rising or falling in OECD members?
- Over the last ten years it is down 19.4%. 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 revenue). 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 a percentage of revenue which includes all transactions that add to the amount of economic value of a unit or sector.