The US national debt recorded a "disappointing achievement" for the third time in the last 12 months, exceeding $34 trillion for the first time ahead of the end of 2023, according to the latest data from the Treasury Department on the Debt to the Exact Cent.

On December 29, 2023, the debt increased by about $90 billion in one day, surpassing $34.001 trillion. Washington took about three months to add $1 trillion to the gross federal debt and six months to accumulate $2 trillion.

In one year, the total public debt of the federal government surged by about $2.65 trillion. In comparison, the United States took over 200 years to surpass the $1 trillion mark in October 1981.