$15.2tn US debt passes 100% of GDP

10.01.2012 [19:19]
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Baku, January 10 (AZERTAC). The US debt to GDP ratio officially past 100 per cent of GDP for the first time at $15.22 trillion. As Zerohedge reported the world`s largest national economy is only $14 billion away from its own debt ceiling, and that is not a large sum when the total debt is double-figure trillions.

At the same time Greece got tough with negotiators over terms of a $170 billion international bailout deal signalling that it wants a 75 per cent haircut for privately held bonds that mature in March, and will default if that cannot be achieved.

Then perhaps the heightened state of tension in the Hormuz Straits is being overlooked. There are fears of a 1970s-style jump in the price of oil if Iran goes ahead with threats to close the straits should European leaders impose an embargo on Iranian oil exports and freeze Iranian central bank assets by the end of this month.

Oil price rises tend to preceed global economic downturns as we saw with $147 oil in July 2008 just before the global economic crisis of that autumn.

In 1973 the price of oil shot up 400 per cent plunging Western economies into a severe recession and 1974 saw one of the worst downturns ever in major stock markets.

$15.2tn US debt passes 100% of GDP

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