Sovereign Debt Markets
The world's largest government bond markets, ranked by total outstanding debt. Data sourced from the IMF World Economic Outlook, BIS securities statistics and national treasury estimates.
| # | Country | Outstanding Debt (est.) | Key Bond Market / Instrument | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  United States |
~$40.7 trillion | US Treasuries (T-Bills, T-Notes, T-Bonds) | World's largest and most liquid bond market; global benchmark for risk-free rates. Total federal debt passed $40 trillion in August 2026 |
| 2 |  Japan |
~$9 trillion | Japanese Government Bonds (JGBs) | Highest debt-to-GDP ratio among major economies (over 200% of GDP), though a weaker yen has pulled the dollar value of outstanding JGBs down slightly. Largely held domestically; the Bank of Japan has been the dominant buyer via yield curve control |
| 3 |  China |
~$9 trillion | Chinese Government Bonds (CGBs) | Figure reflects central government treasury bonds (CGBs) only, for consistency with the other rows; on a broader general-government basis that also includes local government and financing-vehicle debt, the IMF puts China's total closer to $22 trillion. Fast-growing market, increasingly included in global bond indexes |
| 4 |  France |
~$4.1 trillion | OATs (Obligations Assimilables du Trésor) | Core eurozone market; managed by Agence France Trésor. Debt-to-GDP near 118%, the third-highest in the EU after Greece and Italy |
| 5 |  United Kingdom |
~$4.0 trillion | Gilts | Long-established market managed by the UK Debt Management Office; includes index-linked gilts tied to inflation. Public sector net debt stood at around 95% of GDP in mid-2026 |
| 6 |  Italy |
~$3.7 trillion | BTPs (Buoni del Tesoro Poliennali) | Largest eurozone sovereign debt market by debt-to-GDP (nearly 139%); BTP spread vs German Bunds is a key gauge of eurozone stress |
| 7 |  Germany |
~$3.5 trillion | Bunds (Bundesanleihen) | Eurozone safe-haven benchmark; the 10-year Bund yield is the European risk-free rate reference. Rising quickly on new defence and infrastructure borrowing. See ECB policy for context |
| 8 |  India |
~$3.5 trillion | Government Securities (G-Secs) | Fast-growing; recently added to JP Morgan EM bond indexes, attracting significant foreign inflows. Lower debt-to-GDP than most advanced economies on this list |
| 9 |  Canada |
~$2.8 trillion | Government of Canada Bonds | Highly rated; closely correlated with US Treasuries given deep North American economic integration |
| 10 |  Brazil |
~$2.5 trillion | NTN-B, LTN (Tesouro Nacional) | Largest EM bond market in Latin America; high yields driven by Brazil's historically elevated Selic rate |
Figures are approximate as of September 2026 and converted to USD at prevailing exchange rates. Data sourced from IMF, BIS and national treasury estimates. China's figure reflects central government bonds only; other countries reflect total general government gross debt, so China's row is not on a fully like-for-like basis with the rest of the table.