IOUs

[just me]

America’s collective debt, also called the national debt or the public debt, represents the money that the U.S. government owes to the owners of debt instruments that are issued by the U.S. treasury. There are several types of debt instruments issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. All of these items are collectively called treasuries.
America has always had debt. Since the 18th century, the country has carried a load of debt that has fluctuated with the political and social climate of the day. In 1860, America’s debt was $65 million. The Civil War brought about a major spike in the debt. World War I and World War II also brought about major rises in the debt. The latest American debt numbers have put it at its steepest numbers since the debt level spiked during World War II.
America’s debt, as owed to foreign nations, has been rising steadily over the years. The gross debt in trillions of U.S. dollars was about $10 trillion in 1940. In 1950, it had risen to about $18 trillion. After falling for a few decades, it began rising again in the late 1980s. In 2009, America’s debt was again up to $18 trillion. It is projected to continue to rise over the next few years. By 2011 it is projected to be about $20 trillion. The projected amount of American debt in the next few years equals 100 percent of the U.S. GDP.
Foreign Held Treasury Securities in U.S. Dollars
China holds $798.9 billion in American debt. Japan holds $746.5 billion in U.S. debt. The U.K. holds $230.7 billion of the U.S. debt. Brazil holds $156.2 billion in U.S. debt. Hong Kong has $142.0 billion of the American debt. Russia has $122.5 billion of American debt. Luxemburg holds $90.8 billion of the American debt. Taiwan has $78.7 billion of America’s debt. Switzerland owns $71.5 billion of America’s debt. Germany holds $52.8 billion in American debt.
South Korea has $42.2 billion of the U.S. debt. Canada has $40.8 billion in American debt. Ireland has $38.3 billion in U.S. debt. France has $36.2 billion in U.S. debt. Singapore has $35.2 billion of the U.S. debt. India owns $32.9 billion of the American debt. Turkey owns $30.4 billion of the U.S. debt. Thailand holds $30.1 billion in U.S. debt. Norway holds $24.9 billion in American debt. Mexico holds $20.7 billion of U.S. debt.
copied from visualeconomics.com...thank you, ve

Before anyone starts pointing fingers; let me say there are charts that show we have almost always had debt, times when we have owed the most and why, and where we are heading at our current pace.

This is for all the folk out there that think we owe China $800 billion. Think again.

Also, there are other sources with different ways of listing owners of our debt. It is interesting to see oil exporting countries listed together in some of those instances. It is also interesting to see several countries listed that are having political uprisings right now as people we owe money to.

We have a tendency to blame "them" for getting us into debt. "They" need to fix this and fix it now. "They" have sent all our jobs overseas. "They" have put NWR properties up for collateral?? The point I am making is we are "they". We are the ones that will be paying these debts off. Our children may very well have their properties foreclosed on by foreign investors one day if each state does not step up to the plate and write laws to stop that. What can we do about this? Look the other way or get interested in how to help fix this damned-looking thing? I have a headache; can someone tell me what all this means? heh

Paying taxes on personal properties is comforting, especially knowing we may not even own the properties to begin with. I must get some rest; it is obvious.

 

[Norton]

Our Government reflects our aggregate personal behavior. Any tea bagger who carries a credit card balance beyond thirty days needs to shut up.

 

[Agapooka]

I added those numbers.

2.822 trillion.

What of the other 17+ trillion? To whom are they owed?


Agapooka

 

[just me]

I added those numbers.

2.822 trillion.

What of the other 17+ trillion? To whom are they owed?


Agapooka

Try google, my friend; feel free to post your results. I am tired of all my friends telling me we are owned by China. Most oil exporting countries were obviously omitted. Someone help turn the hot water off.

copied from Wikipedia...
As of January 2011, foreigners owned $4.45 trillion of U.S. debt, or approximately 47% of the debt held by the public of $9.49 trillion and 32% of the total debt of $14.1 trillion. The largest holders were the central banks of China ($1.1 trillion) and Japan ($885 billion).[28][29] The share held by foreign governments has grown over time, rising from 25% of the public debt in 2007[30] and 13% in 1988.[31]
This exposure to potential financial or political risk should foreign banks stop buying Treasury securities or start selling them heavily was addressed in a June 2008 report issued by the Bank of International Settlements, which stated, "Foreign investors in U.S. dollar assets have seen big losses measured in dollars, and still bigger ones measured in their own currency. While unlikely, indeed highly improbable for public sector investors, a sudden rush for the exits cannot be ruled out completely."[32]
On May 20, 2007, Kuwait discontinued pegging its currency exclusively to the dollar, preferring to use the dollar in a basket of currencies.[33] Syria made a similar announcement on June 4, 2007.[34] In September 2009 China, India and Russia said they were interested in buying IMF gold to diversify their dollar-denominated securities.[35] However, in July 2010 China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange "ruled out the option of dumping its vast holdings of US Treasury securities" and said gold "cannot become a main channel for investing our foreign exchange reserves" because the market for gold is too small and prices are too volatile.[36]

key words...foreign held debt

 

[just me]

http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/BPDLogin?application=np

The Debt to the Penny and Who Holds It

( Debt Held by the Public vs. Intragovernmental Holdings )

See information on the Debt Subject to the Limit.
Held by the Public 03/31/2011: 9,651,643,154,138.73

CurrentDebt Held by Intragovernmental Holdings 4,618,471,376,661.65


Total Public Debt 14,270,114,530,800.38


Part of a series of articles onUnited States
budget and debt topicsMajor dimensionsFederal budget