The United States is thinking of going into debt over 100 years

The Trump administration is seriously considering going into debt over the very long term by issuing bonds maturing in 50 or 100 years.

That's what US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in an interview with Bloomberg Wednesday. He said this option was "very seriously taken into account". Currently, the maximum period is 30 years.

"If conditions are good, then I expect we will take advantage of long-term borrowing," he said.

Essentially, the measure allows you to borrow more and at lower cost by taking advantage of low interest rates.

But the US secretary said the new interest had nothing to do with falling US yields in the shorter term. "It would be premature for me to comment on our conclusion," he said.

This is not the first time that the idea is evoked by the US Treasury. It has been considered at least four times in the last decade, according to the financial agency.

As recently as 2017, Steven Mnuchin had asked his team to explore the feasibility of issuing US Treasury bonds at age 50 or even 100 years. The measure was rejected by a Loan Advisory Committee advising the department and their views on the matter would not have changed.

At the time, reports Bloomberg, it was also lukewarm on the part of Wall Street investors.

Many countries around the world use this instrument. In this case, Austria, Belgium, Ireland, but also Mexico issued coupons at 100 years. France and Canada have already borrowed at age 50.

Currently, the US national debt is estimated at about US $ 22,547 billion, a historical record.