Sri Lanka's external debt stocks (% of GNI) was 58.89% in 2024, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is up 6.53 percentage points from 52.36% in 2014.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 58.89% | 2024 |
| Five years earlier | 64.85% | 2019 |
| Ten years earlier | 52.36% | 2014 |
| Highest | 81.28% | 2022 |
| Lowest | 20.34% | 1970 |
| Average since 2015 | 63.67% | 2015–2024 |
| First recorded | 20.34% | 1970 |
What the numbers say
In 2024, Sri Lanka's external debt stocks (% of GNI) fell 15.7 percentage points on 2023 (from 74.59% to 58.89%).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +0.26 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 5.74 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.8 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 22.84 percentage points in 1978 and the biggest yearly fall was 15.7 percentage points in 2024. 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 2.19 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 49% 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.
How it compares
In 2024, Sri Lanka had the 36th highest value of the 110 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.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Sri Lanka | 58.89% | 2024 |
| South Asia | 20.02% | 2024 |
| Upper middle income | 21.3% | 2024 |
Closest to Sri Lanka in the 2024 ranking
What this measures
Total external debt stocks to gross national income. Total external debt is debt owed to nonresidents repayable in currency, goods, or services. Total external debt is the sum of public, publicly guaranteed, and private nonguaranteed long-term debt, use of IMF credit, and short-term debt. Short-term debt includes all debt having an original maturity of one year or less and interest in arrears on long-term debt. GNI (formerly GNP) is the sum of value added by all resident producers plus any product taxes (less subsidies) not included in the valuation of output plus net receipts of primary income (compensation of employees and property income) from abroad.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 55 values
| Year | External debt stocks (% of GNI) |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 58.89 |
| 2023 | 74.59 |
| 2022 | 81.28 |
| 2021 | 67.86 |
| 2020 | 69.31 |
| 2019 | 64.85 |
| 2018 | 57.49 |
| 2017 | 55.15 |
| 2016 | 54.38 |
| 2015 | 52.88 |
| 2014 |
External debt stocks (% of GNI) in nearby economies
- Bangladesh — 22.25% (2024)
- Bhutan — 114.5% (2023)
- India — 18.58% (2024)
- Maldives — 75.56% (2024)
- Nepal — 23.27% (2024)
More economic policy & debt data for Sri Lanka
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$) — US$9.1 billion (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current LCU) — 2.74 trillion (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (constant 2015 US$) — US$6.84 billion (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (constant LCU) — 929.67 billion (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (% of GDP) — 8.36% (2025)
- Manufacturing, value added (current US$) — US$18.63 billion (2025)
- Manufacturing, value added (current LCU) — 5.61 trillion (2025)
- Manufacturing, value added (% of GDP) — 17.12% (2025)
- Industry, including construction, value added (current US$)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Sri Lanka's external debt stocks (% of GNI)?
- 58.89% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1970?
- It is up 38.55 percentage points from 20.34% in 1970. The highest value was 81.28% in 2022 and the lowest 20.34% in 1970.
- How does Sri Lanka rank?
- 36th highest of 110 economies with data for 2024.
- Is the latest change in external debt stocks (% of GNI) unusual for Sri Lanka?
- In 2024, Sri Lanka's external debt stocks (% of GNI) fell 15.7 percentage points on 2023 (from 74.59% to 58.89%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +0.26 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 5.74 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.8 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator DT.DOD.DECT.GN.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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