U.S. Debt Now Exceeds Economy for First Time Since WWII

Federal debt reached $31.27 trillion in 2024, surpassing nominal GDP of $31.22 trillion and pushing the debt-to-GDP ratio above 100% for the first time in post-WWII peacetime. The gap has widened further since that crossing. Slower nominal growth—Q1 2026 real GDP expanded just 1.6% annually—leaves insufficient tailwind to bend that curve downward without a primary budget surplus, something the U.S. hasn't run since 2001.