Russian Federation: Central government debt, total (current LCU)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Russian Federation's central government debt, total (current LCU) rose 10.6% on 2023 (from 32.64 trillion to 36.11 trillion).

Across the 22 yearly changes before that (1999 to 2023), the average change was +12.4% and a typical year strayed about 14.8% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations below 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 33.8% in 2014 and the biggest yearly fall was 26.1% in 2006. 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 upward, about 2.93 trillion a year. A straight line explains 98% 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.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 43.44 trillion for 2027. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2022 to 2024 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 3.25 trillion, against 4.68 trillion for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2024, Russian Federation had the 4th highest value of the 29 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Russian Federation in the 2024 ranking

• Korea, Rep. — 1st of 29: 1,222.54 trillion
• Colombia — 2nd of 29: 1,219.82 trillion
• Hungary — 3rd of 29: 66.82 trillion
• Mongolia — 5th of 29: 34.96 trillion
• United States — 6th of 29: 33.92 trillion
• Mexico — 7th of 29: 16.84 trillion

What this measures

Debt is the entire stock of direct government fixed-term contractual obligations to others outstanding on a particular date. It includes domestic and foreign liabilities such as currency and money deposits, securities other than shares, and loans. It is the gross amount of government liabilities reduced by the amount of equity and financial derivatives held by the government. Because debt is a stock rather than a flow, it is measured as of a given date, usually the last day of the fiscal year. Central government is the part of general government that includes all administrative departments of the national executive, legislative, and judicial functions, other central agencies and those non-market producers controlled by the central government, whose competence extends normally over the whole economic territory. This indicator is expressed in current prices, meaning no adjustment has been made to account for price changes over time. This series is expressed in local currency units.

Limitations: For most countries central government finance data have been consolidated into one account, but for others only budgetary central government accounts are available. Countries reporting budgetary data are noted in the country metadata. Because budgetary accounts may not include all central government units (such as social security funds), they usually provide an incomplete picture. In federal states the central government accounts provide an incomplete view of total public finance. Data on government revenue and expense are collected by the IMF through questionnaires to member countries and by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

All 25 values

Central government debt, total (current LCU) in nearby economies

• Albania — 1.26 trillion (2024)
• Belarus — 44.79 billion (2019)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 21.36 billion (2024)
• Georgia — 37.3 billion (2024)
• Hungary — 66.82 trillion (2024)
• Iceland — 3.5 trillion (2023)
• Kazakhstan — 24.95 trillion (2023)
• Kyrgyz Republic — 612.83 billion (2024)
• Moldova — 121.39 billion (2024)
• San Marino — 1.77 billion (2024)

More public sector data for Russian Federation

• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 15.96 trillion (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 7.5% (2025)
• Arms exports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 1.94 billion (2025)
• Intentional homicides, female (per 100,000 female) — 2.78 (2023)
• Intentional homicides, male (per 100,000 male) — 9.87 (2023)
• Military expenditure (current USD) — 190.42 billion (2025)
• Intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) — 6.77 (2021)
• Battle-related deaths (number of people) — 7,670 (2024)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (current LCU)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Russian Federation's central government debt, total (current LCU)?

36.11 trillion in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1998?

It is up 854.06% from 3.79 trillion in 1998 (9.06% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 36.11 trillion in 2024 and the lowest 2.38 trillion in 2007.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator GC.DOD.TOTL.CN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) 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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