Federal debt as a percent of GDP under Ronald Reagan

Federal debt measured against the size of the economy that has to carry it.

Over 1981-01-20 to 1989-01-19, measured in Percent of GDP:

Term average

41.15 Percent of GDP

At the start

30.71 Percent of GDP

At the end

49.73 Percent of GDP

Change

+19.02 Percent of GDP

Low

30.6 Percent of GDP (1981-07-01)

High

49.73 Percent of GDP (1989-01-01)

Coverage

100% (32 observations)

Reading this series over a presidential term

The ratio falls when the economy grows faster than the debt, which can happen through growth, through inflation, or through a shrinking deficit. A term can cut this ratio without cutting a dollar of borrowing.

It uses gross debt, including what the government owes its own trust funds; a ratio built on debt held by the public would be lower and would move differently. Both numerator and denominator are revised.

These are the observed values over the window above, and nothing more. This site does not say which direction is better, and none of this is a claim that Ronald Reagan caused the number to move.

What Federal debt as a percent of GDP measures · Ronald Reagan: the whole record · Chart it · Compare with another president · The source at FRED