How threatening are the high levels of corporate debt?

ON SEPTEMBER 20TH the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the central banks’ central bank, released data showing that corporate borrowing around the world remains at an all-time high. A notable case is in China, where there is even more business borrowing as a share of GDP than in Japan at the peak of its bubble-related borrowing spree in the 1990s. But it is high everywhere (see chart). Corporate debt in the rich world stood at 102% of GDP at the end of March, compared with 92% before the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic. Could high levels of debt threaten the recovery in advanced economies?