Vitor Gaspar

The world is swimming in a record $152 trillion in debt, the International Monetary Fund said on Oct. 5, even as the institution encourages some countries to spend more to boost flagging growth if they can afford it. 

A study released by the IMF revealed that private and public debt across the globe have reached unprecedented levels. The report claims the aggregate debt last year exceeded the world’s generated wealth by more than double. Not counting the financial sector, global debt amounted to 152 trillion US dollars at the end of 2015, translated into 255% of world’s nominal GDP.