By the end of 2025, China's total external debt slightly decreased by 0.7%, with the proportion of local currency external debt rising to 55.5%.

[Caixin] What changes will occur in China’s external debt landscape by 2025?

On March 27, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange released data on China’s total external debt, indicating that by the end of 2025, China’s total external debt balance in both domestic and foreign currencies will be $2,328.8 billion, which is basically flat compared to the end of 2024, with a slight decrease of 0.7%.

Correspondingly, the indicators measuring external debt risk have also slightly decreased. By the end of 2025, the ratio of China’s external debt balance to GDP will be 11.9%, with the external debt liability ratio decreasing by 0.5 percentage points year-on-year, continuing to be below the international red line of 20%; the ratio of China’s external debt balance to trade export income will be 56.3%, with the debt ratio decreasing by 4.3 percentage points year-on-year, below the international red line of 100%; the ratio of external debt repayment amount to trade export income is the debt service ratio, which will be 6.2% by the end of 2025, also lower than the international red line of 20%.