The nation’s debt climbed to a record $21.21 trillion at the end of June, a 6.9% increase from a year earlier.
Yikes. 6.9 percent. And here I am, happy to have just found a 2.8% CD. We are drowning in debt guys, and nobody is doing a thing about it. We are on a veritable bus speeding to a future that's darker than dark, and instead of hitting the brake, we are pressing down even harder on that accelerator.
The only questions in my mind are, "When do we reach a cliff?" and "When do we begin to fall?" It would be best to not be on that bus when the ride ends.
Next year, I need to have a FAR bigger garden. And my wife and I need to learn to can. You guys probably do too. Owning a lot of failed promises isn't going to fill our bellies.
August 18, 2018
Here’s who owns a record $21.21 trillion of U.S. debt
Americans own 70% of U.S. debt, but China, Japan loom large
By Jeffry Bartash
Marketwatch.com
Who owns the huge and growing U.S. national debt? By and large, Americans.
Some 70% of the national debt is owned by domestic government, institutions investors and the Federal Reserve. A shade under 30% is owned by foreign entities, according to the latest information from the U.S. Treasury.
The nation’s debt climbed to a record $21.21 trillion at the end of June, a 6.9% increase from a year earlier.
American institutions such as private and state pension funds as well as individual investors were the biggest holders. They owned $6.89 trillion in debt and absorbed about four-fifths of the increase over the past year.
Foreigners, led by the Chinese and Japanese, owned $6.21 trillion. Those two countries have cut their stakes since 2015, but each country still owns more than $1 trillion worth of Treasury bonds and notes.
The Chinese government or Chinese investors likely own even more U.S. debt purchased through entities in other countries such as Hong Kong, Luxembourg or the Cayman Islands, all of which are havens for tax shelters.
Notably, Russia has slashed its Treasury holdings to a mere $15 billion from a peak of $153 billion in mid-2013 amid worsening tensions with the U.S.
So far there’s little evidence that other countries will follow suit to strike back at the U.S. amid ongoing trade disputes. Many need or want Treasury bonds and notes as a safe place to park their savings.
The U.S. government, for its part, owned $5.73 trillion in debt, mostly via Social Security and federal pension funds.
The Federal Reserve owned $2.38 trillion in debt, but it trimmed its holdings by $85 billion since June 2017. The Fed last year began to partly sell off the vast hoard of Treasurys it snapped up to lower interest rates and flood the economy with cash during and immediately after the Great Recession.
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/heres-who-owns-a-record-2121-trillion-of-us-debt-2018-08-21
Gold is $1,581/oz today. When it hits $2,000, it will be up 26.5%. Let's see how long that takes. - De 3/11/2013 - ANSWER: 7 Years, 5 Months
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