There is good chance that burgeoning debt will likely force several countries to default and would prompt the US to cut spending, according to Harvard University Professor Kenneth Rogoff.

"One usually sees sovereign defaults following banking crises," said the former chief economist at the IMF at a forum in Tokyo. "It's very, very hard to call the timing, but it will happen," Rogoff told the audience. Many countries will be forced to undertake painful austerity measures, he added.

Sovereign debt position is pretty precarious in many countries, including Greece after shortfalls of countries swelled in the backdrop of worst global financial meltdown since the 1930s. Rogoff also said he expects Greece to be rescued by the International Monetary Fund and not by EU.

Among other things, Rogoff predicted China's economic growth to sink to as low as 2 per cent following the collapse of a 'debt-fueled bubble' within a decade causing a recession in the region, which could be 'horrible' for Latin American commodity exporters. He added that 'real estate reality is the best bet' and will cause China's bubble to pop.