The US Has 10 Days Before It Defaults On Its Debt

The US Has 10 Days Before It Defaults On Its Debt – What That Could Mean For You

Georgina Tzanetos   Tue, September 21, 2021

The United States has historically been one of the most credit-worthy countries in the entire world. U.S. Treasury bonds are considered some of the safest financial instruments in international markets, and their movements are used as a benchmark for movement within the global economy.

The U.S. is also a debt nation — we all have some form of it, be it with monthly credit cards, student loans and mortgages. It’s hard to think of a world where you can’t just go to a bank and get a mortgage for your first house or open up even a low-limit credit card — but the reality is the U.S. is a privileged place in terms of the free-flowing credit most of its citizens run on.

That could change in the next 10 days. During President Donald Trump’s presidency, the national debt climbed over $8 trillion largely fueled by massive tax cuts and emergency pandemic spending. The Biden administration, thus far, has increased the county’s debt by about another $3.5 trillion with the American Rescue Plan stimulus relief bill and other economic recovery efforts during the ongoing pandemic.

The government fiscal year ends Sept. 30 and a new budget will need to be agreed on in order to fund the spending that has already happened.

How The Government Funds These Big Spending Bills

Using this year as an example, the government essentially took out a $3.5 trillion loan against itself in order to pay for things like stimulus payments, business relief, etc. Now, it is time to pay that loan back — this is done in the form of bonds. The government agrees on a certain level, or debt ceiling, of debt to issue in the form of Treasury bonds. These bonds are then sold into the open market at monthly auctions held by the Treasury itself. This, plus taxes you pay, raises the revenue needed for things like government spending.

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https://news.yahoo.com/us-10-days-defaults-debt-162711207.html