The Central Bank of Nicaragua published its report and statistics on total external debt (public and private) for the fourth quarter of 2025, reporting an outstanding balance of USD 16,245.1 million. The stock comprised 54.4% public sector debt (USD 8,836.6 million) and 45.6% private sector debt (USD 7,408.5 million), with creditor shares of 42.3% multilateral official, 30.5% bilateral official, 3.1% commercial banks, and 24.1% suppliers and other creditors. Total external debt increased by USD 423.8 million (+2.7%) versus the end-2024 balance of USD 15,821.2 million, reflecting rises of USD 245.0 million in private external debt and USD 178.9 million in public external debt. During the year, external debt disbursements totalled USD 3,937.0 million, sourced 89.5% from private creditors and 10.5% from official creditors; 85.7% of disbursements went to the private sector (USD 3,372.9 million) and 14.3% to the public sector (USD 564.1 million), led by electricity, gas and water (28.3%), trade (23.2%), financial intermediation (18.6%), and manufacturing (14.1%). External debt service paid amounted to USD 3,996.6 million, including USD 3,586.4 million in principal and USD 410.2 million in interest and fees, with 80.5% paid by the private sector; the report also notes financial conditions similar to 2024, with average contracted terms of around 14 years at a 5.30% weighted average interest rate for long-term private debt, and 21 years (including 10 years’ grace) at 2.84% for public debt.

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