Public sector external debt amounted to 7.3 billion USD (19.0 billion GEL) or 48.3 percent of GDP. Out of which, debt of the general government amounted to 5.3 billion USD (13.7 billion GEL) or 34.9 percent of GDP. External liabilities of the National Bank of Georgia amounted to 291.4 million USD (755.4 million GEL) or 1.9 percent of GDP. And, the bonds and loans of public enterprises were correspondingly 852.7 million USD (2.2 billion GEL) or 5.6 percent of GDP and 883.5 million USD (2.3 billion GEL) and 5.8 percent of GDP.
Banking sector external debt amounted to 3.7 billion USD (9.5 billion GEL) or 24.2 percent of GDP; Other sectors' external debt stood at 5.4 billion USD (13.9 billion GEL) or 35.3 percent of GDP; While 2.6 billion USD (6.7 billion GEL) or 17.1 percent of GDP was the intercompany lending. The 91.4 percent of the gross external debt of Georgia was denominated in foreign currency.
The net external debt of Georgia amounted to 10.1 billion USD (26.2 billion GEL or 66.6 percent of GDP) as of 31st December 2017. Net public sector external debt was 4.2 billion USD (11.0 billion GEL or 28.0 percent of GDP).
External liabilities of the National Bank of Georgia increased by 43.8 million USD, out of that, transactions and exchange rate changes led to increase of the debt by 41.6 million USD and 2.2 million USD respectively. By the end of the fourth quarter of 2017, the external debt of the National Bank of Georgia amounted to 291.4 million USD, of which 205.3 million USD are Special Drawing Rights (SDR)1, which have no maturity date, therefore there is no obligation to repay them as long as Georgia is a member of the IMF.
