Debt in China swells to over double its GDP with no quick fix in sight

Debt in China has surged to alarming levels resulting in the overall amount now owed by governments, firms and people to be more than double the nation's GDP, warns leading think-tank, the National Institution for Finance and Development, marking the first government-backed body to admit to China's huge debt pile. Amounts owed by non-financial businesses, households and governments has surged nearly 11% points over the year to 228% of GDP. The report adds that there is also no quick fix to stop the debt piling up.

Leverage in China has soared to alarming levels, with overall debt swelling to more than twice the size of the economy at the end of last year, a leading government-backed think tank said. Photo: AFP