BlockBeats report: On August 16, the U.S. Treasury’s reliance on short-term debt is increasing: U.S. Treasury bills now account for 21% of the tradable U.S. debt securities market, a level nearing the highest since 2020, when the federal government significantly increased borrowing to respond to the pandemic. This figure is well above the 10–15% range observed between 2012 and 2019. By comparison, during the 2008 financial crisis, this proportion reached approximately 34%.
Meanwhile, the U.S. government is increasingly relying on short-term Treasury bills to meet its growing borrowing needs, rather than long-term bonds. If the U.S. Treasury continues issuing long-term debt at the current pace before fiscal year 2027, long-term debt could account for 25% of total debt—the highest proportion since 2004. However, this approach increases the government’s exposure to short-term interest rate volatility; if rates continue to rise or surge again, debt servicing costs could become unsustainable. The U.S. debt crisis is fully unfolding.