By P.K.Balachandran
Colombo, December 28 (Counterpoint): The International Debt Report 2023 of the World Bank put Sri Lanka’s external debt in 2022 at US$ 58.7 billion. Bondholders and private creditors accounted for 72% of the external debt.
The break-up is as follows: Bondholders (32%); Other Commercial Creditors (8%); Private Creditors (40%); Multilateral Creditors (29%); Bilateral Creditors (31%); World Bank and International Development Agency (8%); Asian Development Bank (15%); China (16%); Japan (7%); India (5%); Other Bilateral Creditors (3%).
History of External Debt Stocks
I Total External Debt Stocks:
2010- US$ 21.6 billion
2018-US$ 52.9 billion
2019-US$ 56.1 billion
2020-US$ 56.8 billion
2021-US$ 58.7 billion
2022-US$ 58.7 billion.
II Long-Term External Debt Stocks:
2010-US$ 17.3 billion
2018-US$ 43.1 billion
2019-US$ 45.8 billion
2020-US$ 46.5 billion
2021-US$ 47.5 billion
2022-US$ 47.7 billion.
III Short-Term External Debt Stocks:
2010-US$ 2.4 billion
2018-US$ 8.1 billion
2019-US$ 8.4 billion
2020-US$ 8.3 billion
2022-US$ 8.5 billion
IV Principal Repayment Long Term:
2010-US$ 727 million
2018-US$ 5.5 billion
2019-US$ 4.4 billion
2020-US$ 3.3 billion
2021-US$ 3.0 billion
2022-US$ 2.0 billion
V Interest Payments Long Term:
2010-US$ 616 million
2018-US$ 1.5 billion
2019-US$ 1.5 billion
2020-US$ 1.5 billion
2021-US$ 1.5 billion
2022-US$ 780 million.
VI Use of IMF Credit and SDR Allocations:
2010-US% 1.9 billion;
2018-US$ 1.5 billion
2019-US$ 1.8 billion
2020-1.9 billion
2021-US$ 2.5 billion
2022-US$ 2.3 billion
Glossary
External Debt Stocks comprise public and publicly guaranteed long-term external debt, private nonguaranteed long-term external debt, use of International Monetary Fund credit and special drawing rights allocation, and short-term external debt.
Long-Term External Debt is debt that has an original or extended maturity of more than one year and that is owed to non-residents by residents of an economy and is repayable in currency, goods, or services.
Short-Term External Debt has an original maturity of one year or less. Available data permit no distinctions among public, publicly guaranteed, and private nonguaranteed short-term external debt
SDR Allocations are reserve-related liabilities, distributed to member countries in proportion to their quota shares at the International Monetary Fund. The SDR (Special Drawing Rights) allocations are included in the gross external debt position and classified as long-term, special drawing right.
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