"Debt clock" displaying gallopping world debt by country and total; dark brown on the map is :(

Across the rich world, governments are borrowing vast amounts as the recession reduces tax revenue and spending mounts on bailouts, unemployment benefits and stimulus plans. New figures from the IMF suggest the public debt of the 10 leading rich countries will rise from 78% of GDP in 2007 to 114% by 2014. These governments will then owe about $50,000 for every one of their citizens, writes The Guardian. Not since the second world war have so many governments borrowed so much so quickly.

While governments advisors now propagate that the worst global economic storm since the 1930s are clearing, another cloud already looms on the financial horizon: massive public debt.

The Economist has devised an online guide that keeps a running total of the current global public debt – updating every few seconds – and provides projections of how it will grow. There is also an interactive map that allows users see which countries are particularly laden with debt – America, the UK, most of continental Europe – and which are less dependent on borrowing to balance the books – India, China, much of Africa.

The magazine admits that its clock is "not perfectly accurate", but is meant to provide a graphic perspective on an important economic issue. The clock (tick-tock ...) is modelled on the National Debt Clock in New York. That model gained an extra digit last year to cope with America's growing national debt.