Fewer countries owe China more than the World Bank
Borrowers whose public debt owed to China exceeds debt owed to the World Bank (IDA + IBRD), number of countries.
- 1. China now builds more ships than everyone else combined
- 2. China makes more electricity than the US and EU combined
- 3. China installs more robots than everyone else combined
- 4. China is building half the world's new reactors
- 5. China switched on 80% of the world's new coal power
- 6. China's vehicle exports grew sevenfold in five years
- 7. Six of the world's ten busiest ports are in China
- 8. China completed six in ten of 2025's new skyscrapers
- 9. China has more metro track than the next six combined
- 10. China refines most of the minerals of the future
- 11. China's new housing starts have fallen 74% since 2019
- 12. China is building more power capacity than everyone else combined
- 13. China now emits more CO2 per person than Japan
- 14. Nearly 20 million Shanghai residents live in a flood zone
- 15. Fewer countries owe China more than the World Bank
countries owed China more than the World Bank in 2025, down from a peak of 43 in 2017 and 2019.
borrowers left the list between 2019 and 2024, including Kenya, Ecuador and Côte d'Ivoire.
countries paying China down while World Bank lending rose (Interpretation).
the numbers & method
| Countries | |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 20 |
| 2015 | 39 |
| 2017 | 43 |
| 2019 | 43 |
| 2021 | 40 |
| 2022 | 39 |
| 2023 | 37 |
| 2024 | 35 |
| 2025 | 31 |
Claim types Fact · Interpretation
World Bank IDS API (source 6, last updated 5 Nov 2026): public and publicly guaranteed external debt stock owed to China (DT.DOD.DPPG.CD, counterpart 730) against debt owed to IDA (905) plus IBRD (901) (DT.DOD.MLAT.CD). Count of borrowing countries where China's claim is larger, out of 97 with a China claim; regional and income aggregates excluded; Venezuela not reported. Counts are progrss calculations. Left the list 2019–2024: Bolivia, Côte d'Ivoire, Ecuador, Fiji, Kenya, Eswatini, Togo, Uzbekistan, South Africa; joined: Serbia. Kenya: China 7.5 → 5.4 bn, IDA 7.1 → 11.9 bn. Debt stocks (owed), not new lending. 2025 is the latest release; a few 2025 IDA values are reported as zero.
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