{"id":18660,"date":"2026-08-19T20:33:30","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T20:33:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nile1.com\/en\/?p=18660"},"modified":"2026-08-19T20:33:42","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T20:33:42","slug":"u-s-national-debt-crosses-40-trillion-as-deficits-and-interest-costs-surge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nile1.com\/en\/2026\/08\/19\/u-s-national-debt-crosses-40-trillion-as-deficits-and-interest-costs-surge\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. National Debt Crosses $40 Trillion as Deficits and Interest Costs Surge"},"content":{"rendered":"

The U.S. national debt surpassed $40 trillion for the first time on Wednesday, driven by persistent budget deficits and rapid growth in federal debt service costs.<\/p>\n

Data from the Treasury Department<\/a> released on Wednesday showed that the gross national debt reached $40,047,425,768,420.22 as of August 18.<\/p>\n

This $40 trillion threshold comes after the federal debt crossed $39 trillion in March and $38 trillion in October 2025. Data published by the U.S. Department of the Treasury<\/a> shows that annual net interest spending on public debt increased to $882 billion in fiscal year 2024, up from $659 billion in fiscal year 2023, driven by a combination of elevated federal borrowing and higher market interest rates.<\/p>\n

A March estimate by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office<\/a> (CBO) estimated that the gross national debt will rise to $63 trillion in 2036, with annual budget deficits widening from about $2.1 trillion, the agency’s estimate for the current fiscal year, to $3.1 trillion a year a decade from now.<\/p>\n

In its updated June 2024 fiscal report, the CBO projected that net interest outlays will reach $892 billion in fiscal year 2024 and climb to $1.2 trillion annually by 2034. During fiscal year 2024, net interest costs surpassed total federal spending on national defense, which stood at $849 billion, as spending on major entitlement programs like Social Security increased to $1.46 trillion.<\/p>\n

The accumulation of national debt has also altered the balance between federal debt and total economic output. Debt held by the public reached $31.27 trillion in late March, exceeding the $31.22 trillion gross domestic product of the United States. That development marked the first time in approximately 80 years that publicly held debt surpassed national economic output.<\/p>\n

CBO projections indicate that debt held by the public will break the record of 106 percent of GDP set in 1946 during post-World War II demobilization, before climbing to an estimated 120 percent of GDP by 2036.<\/p>\n

Michael A. Peterson, CEO of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, told FOX Business that “For the millions concerned about affordability, let’s start by asking Washington to take notice that the national debt just hit $40 trillion,” adding that the debt has doubled in under 10 years and that “we must change course.”<\/p>\n

“The more debt we take on, the more interest costs we have to bear, which now even exceed the cost of national defense. And every trillion we add to our debt contributes to higher interest rates and inflation, increasing the mortgages, car loans and credit card bills of all Americans,” he said.<\/p>\n

“At the same time, debt harms economic growth, slowing wage increases while the cost of living continues to rise.”<\/p>\n

The CBO warned in its budget outlook that debt held by the public growing faster than national GDP could crowd out private investment, elevate borrowing costs across the economy, and increase the risk of a sudden fiscal crisis where investors demand higher interest rates to hold U.S. government debt.<\/p>\n

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