BAKU - Azerbaijan’s public debt fell by about 2.1 billion manats ($1.23 billion) in the first nine months of 2026, reducing the debt-to-GDP ratio to 17.3%, Finance Ministry data showed.
Total public debt stood at 23.8963 billion manats ($14.06 billion) on Oct. 1, according to figures reported by Trend and Vesti Baku.
Domestic Debt Remains the Larger Share
External public debt totaled 7.6662 billion manats, or 32.1% of the total, while domestic debt was 16.2301 billion manats, or 67.9%.
Since the start of the year, external debt declined by $304 million and domestic debt fell by 1.5744 billion manats. In manat terms, the combined reduction was 2.0912 billion manats, or 8%.
Public debt was equivalent to 17.3% of projected 2026 gross domestic product, down 2.8 percentage points from 20.1% at the end of 2025.
State-Guaranteed Debt Also Declines
State-guaranteed debt fell by 2.4824 billion manats, or 23.9%, to 7.886 billion manats. The ministry attributed most of that reduction to repayment of $2 billion in U.S. dollar bonds issued by Southern Gas Corridor CJSC.
Payments on government bonds totaled 2.6943 billion manats in January-September. Of that amount, 2.2972 billion manats went toward principal and 397.1 million manats covered interest and discount payments.
External public debt was $4.5095 billion on Oct. 1. Loans accounted for 69.2% of that amount and eurobonds for 30.8%; 67.7% of the external debt is due within five years.