Executive snapshot (2023)
- Total external debt: $646.8B (up ~51% vs 2013; ~4.2% CAGR).
- Long-term / Short-term: $498.3B LT, $126.3B ST (2023).
- Public & publicly guaranteed (PPG): $214.9B; Private non-guaranteed: $283.3B.
- Use of IMF credit & SDR allocations: $22.2B (post-2021 spike sustained).
- Debt/GNI: 18.4% (down from 23.3% in 2013).
- Reserves/External debt: 96.2% (near 1:1 coverage).
- Debt/Exports & Debt-service/Exports: 79.7% and 10.1%, respectively.
India’s External Debt, 2013–2023: What the 2024 IDS Tables Tell Us
A data-backed deep dive using World Bank International Debt Statistics (last updated Feb 26, 2025). Compiled August 27, 2025.
$646.8B
18.4%
96.2%
$214.9B vs $283.3B
1) Levels and Composition
India’s total external debt increased from $427.2B (2013) to $646.8B (2023). Long‑term debt drove most of the rise (to $498.3B), while short‑term debt reached $126.3B. The short-term share hovered in the high teens to ~20%.
2) Who Owes It? (Debtor Type)
Public & publicly guaranteed (PPG) debt rose faster—$121.5B → $214.9B—than private non‑guaranteed debt ($207.0B → $283.3B). This points to a gradually larger sovereign/PPG footprint within external liabilities.
3) Sustainability Signals
Debt/GNI fell from 23.3% to 18.4% in 2023. Reserves/External Debt is near parity (96.2%), after >100% around 2020–2021. Debt/Exports cooled to ~80% in 2023 from the 2020 spike, while Debt‑service/Exports sits ~10%.
Interpretation: healthy buffers + moderate short-term share = manageable rollover risk, but global liquidity still matters.
4) IMF & SDR: The 2021 Step-up
Use of IMF credit and SDR allocations jumped to $23.2B in 2021 and remains around $22.2B (2023). This is a compositional step‑change rather than a temporary blip.
5) Equity Flows: FDI Resilience vs. Portfolio Swings
FDI stayed robust through the decade (2020 high: $59.5B), while portfolio equity swung negative in 2018 and 2022 before a 2023 rebound.
Risks & Watch‑items for 2025
- Global rates & liquidity: Monitoring Debt‑service/Exports and the short‑term share of debt is key.
- External buffers: Maintaining high reserves vs. external debt underpins resilience.
- PPG project quality: Faster PPG growth emphasizes execution discipline and productivity of borrowed funds.
Data Tables
| Year | Total External Debt (USD mn) | Long-term Debt (USD mn) | Short-term Debt (USD mn) | Use of IMF Credit & SDR (USD mn) | PPG External Debt (USD mn) | Private Non-Guaranteed (USD mn) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 427245.1 | 328412.5 | 92706.1 | 6126.5 | 121461.8 | 206950.7 |
| 2014 | 457507.4 | 366169.3 | 85574.3 | 5763.7 | 152515.2 | 213654.2 |
| 2015 | 478831.0 | 391755.4 | 81562.8 | 5512.8 | 162310.9 | 229444.5 |
| 2016 | 455541.9 | 366260.9 | 83932.9 | 5348.1 | 153013.3 | 213247.6 |
| 2017 | 511575.7 | 408301.5 | 97608.6 | 5665.6 | 183017.5 | 225284.0 |
| 2018 | 521175.7 | 411718.8 | 103923.9 | 5532.9 | 180540.0 | 231178.9 |
| 2019 | 561017.4 | 448736.6 | 106779.5 | 5501.2 | 192007.5 | 256729.1 |
| 2020 | 564979.3 | 455716.5 | 103533.1 | 5729.8 | 192805.1 | 262911.4 |
| 2021 | 611987.2 | 474183.4 | 114643.5 | 23160.2 | 205281.7 | 268901.7 |
| 2022 | 615516.0 | 465622.6 | 127870.9 | 22022.6 | 205218.3 | 260404.3 |
| 2023 | 646787.1 | 498265.2 | 126320.1 | 22201.7 | 214915.7 | 283349.6 |
| Year | Debt to GNI (%) | Debt to Exports (%) | Debt Service to Exports (%) | Short-term / Total Debt (%) | Multilateral / Total Debt (%) | Reserves / External Debt (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 23.3 | 89.1 | 8.1 | 21.7 | 11.9 | 69.3 |
| 2014 | 22.7 | 91.8 | 18.6 | 18.7 | 11.1 | 70.6 |
| 2015 | 23.0 | 108.0 | 11.2 | 17.0 | 10.5 | 73.4 |
| 2016 | 20.1 | 102.2 | 17.3 | 18.4 | 11.2 | 79.0 |
| 2017 | 19.5 | 100.7 | 10.1 | 19.1 | 10.4 | 80.1 |
| 2018 | 19.5 | 93.3 | 11.4 | 19.9 | 10.4 | 76.0 |
| 2019 | 20.0 | 98.5 | 9.0 | 19.0 | 10.1 | 82.0 |
| 2020 | 21.4 | 111.4 | 15.1 | 18.3 | 11.4 | 103.7 |
| 2021 | 19.6 | 91.8 | 7.8 | 18.7 | 11.1 | 103.6 |
| 2022 | 18.6 | 77.4 | 8.3 | 20.8 | 11.4 | 91.4 |
| 2023 | 18.4 | 79.7 | 10.1 | 19.5 | 11.4 | 96.2 |
| Year | FDI (USD mn) | Portfolio Equity (USD mn) |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 26712.7 | 19891.6 |
| 2014 | 32353.8 | 12369.3 |
| 2015 | 39662.7 | 1932.6 |
| 2016 | 41986.9 | 2336.7 |
| 2017 | 37097.6 | 5928.1 |
| 2018 | 39234.1 | -4361.0 |
| 2019 | 43135.7 | 13768.5 |
| 2020 | 59495.8 | 24854.1 |
| 2021 | 41121.4 | 5223.3 |
| 2022 | 47078.2 | -16572.1 |
| 2023 | 25519.8 | 21427.1 |
Notes: PPG excludes Use of IMF credit & SDR allocations. Values are in USD millions.