McCarthy, Biden meet as debt ceiling looms in market
U.S. President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy spoke to reporters on the debt ceiling during their scheduled meeting.
Biden said he was hopeful of progress and stressed the need to ensure that tax loopholes are closed and that the wealthy pay their fair share of taxes. After saying earlier in the day that a decision would have to be made at the meeting, McCarthy said he looked forward to finding common ground.
Investors have been watching the latest developments in debt-ceiling talks amid concerns about what a default would mean for the economy.
— Alex Haring
Yellen’s latest guidance: “Extremely likely” Treasury won’t be able to repay debt by early June
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen just released a new letter Provide congressional leaders with updated guidance on the earliest date the United States could be at risk of a serious debt default.
The date in the new letter remains June 1, the same date it has been since early May. But there are two main differences between the new message and a very similar letter Yellen penned on May 15.
“Now with an additional week of information, I am writing to note that we estimate that if Congress does not act to raise or suspend the debt ceiling, the Treasury Department will likely no longer be able to meet all of the government’s obligations in early June, possibly as early as June 1. day,” Yellen wrote.
The term “highly likely” is new. Yellen wrote last week that it was only a “possibility.”
Yellen also removed an entire sentence from last week’s letter, saying emergency steps the Treasury Department is taking now could help push back the June deadline.
“The actual date that the Treasury Department exhausts its extraordinary measures could be days or weeks later than these estimates,” Yellen wrote in a May 15 letter to congressional leaders.
The new letter comes as President Joe Biden is set to meet with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy as part of an increasingly urgent effort to reach a bipartisan compromise.
— Christina Wilkie
Stock futures rose slightly
Stock futures were slightly higher shortly after 6 p.m. ET.
Futures tied to the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 all rose 0.1%.
— Alex Haring