Latin America & Caribbean (IDA & IBRD): Short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Latin America & Caribbean (IDA & IBRD)'s short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income) fell 0.85 percentage points on 2023 (from 16.24% to 15.4%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −1.61 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 3.21 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 9.48 percentage points in 1990 and the biggest yearly fall was 11.5 percentage points in 1984. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.72 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 63% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

What this measures

Short-term external debt is defined as debt that has an original maturity of one year or less. Available data permit no distinction between public and private nonguaranteed short-term debt. Exports of goods, services and primary income is the sum of goods (merchandise) exports, exports of (nonfactor) services and income (factor) receipts.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 43 values

Short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 25.35% (2020)
• Algeria — 3.16% (2024)
• Djibouti — 9.38% (2024)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 46.27% (2024)
• Iraq — 0.63% (2024)
• Jordan — 72.1% (2024)
• Lebanon — 135.85% (2023)
• Morocco — 10.86% (2024)
• Pakistan

More economic policy & debt data for Latin America & Caribbean (IDA & IBRD)

• General government final consumption expenditure (current US$) — US$1.11 trillion (2025)
• General government final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$) — US$958.95 billion (2025)
• General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) — 15.7% (2025)
• Households and NPISHs final consumption expenditure (current US$) — US$4.86 trillion (2025)
• Households and NPISHs final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$) — US$4.11 trillion (2025)
• Households and NPISHs final consumption expenditure per capita (constant 2015 US$) — US$6,311 (2025)
• Households and NPISHs final consumption expenditure (% of GDP)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Latin America & Caribbean (IDA & IBRD)'s short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income)?

15.4% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1979?

It is down 32.42 percentage points from 47.81% in 1979. The highest value was 64.44% in 1993 and the lowest 12.68% in 2008.

Is the latest change in short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income) unusual for Latin America & Caribbean (IDA & IBRD)?

In 2024, Latin America & Caribbean (IDA & IBRD)'s short-term debt (% of exports of goods, services and primary income) fell 0.85 percentage points on 2023 (from 16.24% to 15.4%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −1.61 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 3.21 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator DT.DOD.DSTC.XP.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: International Debt Statistics, World Bank (WB) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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