The results, based on a range of econometric techniques, suggest an inverse relationship
between initial debt and subsequent growth, controlling for other determinants of growth: on
average, a 10 percentage point increase in the initial debt-to-GDP ratio is associated with a
slowdown in annual real per capita GDP growth of around 0.2 percentage points per year,
with the impact being smaller (around 0.15) in advanced economies. There is some evidence
of nonlinearity, with only high (above 90 percent of GDP) levels of debt having a significant
negative effect on growth. This adverse effect largely reflects a slowdown in labor
productivity growth, mainly due to reduced investment and slower growth of the capital
stock per worker. On average, a 10 percentage point increase in initial debt is associated with
a decline of investment by about 0.4 percentage points of GDP, with a larger impact in
emerging economies. Various robustness checks yield largely similar results. They underline
the need to take measures to not just stabilize public debts but to place them on a downward
trajectory in the medium and long term