Graph of the Day: Foreign Holders of U.S. Government Debt, December 2010

[Barrett808]

China holds about $1.2 trillion in U.S. government debt, according to the Treasury Department's latest figures. That's about 30 percent higher than the previous estimate.

This is part of those global imbalances we keep talking about. China exports more than it imports; the U.S. imports more than it exports. So U.S. dollars keep piling up in China.

China ends up lending a lot of those dollars back to the U.S. This keeps China's currency and exports cheap, and helps the U.S. finance its budget deficit. ...

Graph of the Day: Foreign Holders of U.S. Government Debt, December 2010

[RC]

1. Anyone in this country hold any of that debt?

[dixiegrrrrl]

2. USA citizens hold lots of the debt.

Every tax dollar goes to pay for the debt.
Every Soc. Sec./Medicare payment due is actually a debt IOU that the Treasury owes, thus must borrow to make the payment.

[Barrett808]

3. A tiny, little bit. n/m

[hfojvt]

4. as near as I can tell without too much digging

the total debt is about $14,000 billion, with $4,500 billion held by foreigners (and the rest by fans of Styx and Journey (stop that!))

That leaves $8,500 billion held by Americans, including $3 trillion in the social security trust fund. So $5,000 - $6,000 billion held by Americans - much more than the mere $1,200 held by China.