Is corporate debt a problem in the United States and the euro zone?

International institutions, central banks and investors are express ing frequent concern about corporate debt in the United States and the euro zone. Could the high level of corporate debt cause a sharp deterioration in the financial situation of companies and a crisis? Could a loss of Investment G rade status for many companies lead to such a crisis? There is no sign at present of a deterioration in the situation of companies. This leads us to analyse the safety margin that US and euro-zone companies currently enjoy thanks to their high profitability and, assuming interest rates remain low, ask how big a negative growth shock it would take to trigger a corporate debt crisis. We conclude that it would take a stagnation of activity in the United States and a drastic recession in the euro zone to trigger a corporate debt crisis and a sharp deterioration in corporate creditworthiness.