5th - 8th CCSS: Adaptable. Young mathematicians dive into the number line to discover decimals and how the numbers infinitely get smaller in between. They click the zoom button a few times and learn that the number line doesn't just stop at integers. Includes a...
It is clear that the difference between gross and net debt is very large for some countries. While Japan looks like an outlier in terms of gross debt, it is close to Italy and Greece when it comes to net debt.
If the government covers a deficit by borrowing money, then that will increase the national debt. When times are good and tax income is higher than spending, governments can pay back part of the debt and it will come down. The difference between the deficit and the national debt is crucial. The deficit is a snapshot of how the country's finances are doing in any one year. The national debt takes into account what has happened in the past too. A country with a smaller national debt can easily run a big deficit for a few years.