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Should Investors Be Worried About the Debt Ceiling Debate?

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Written by: Joe Halwax
Published on: February 24, 2023

May 15 Update:  Negotiations to raise the U.S. debt ceiling are continuing ahead of the June 1 “X-date,” which is the day Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned that the government’s borrowing limits could be reached. President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy have scheduled meetings this week to discuss a potential deal. Remember that in 2011 a deal was reached just two days before the “X-date,” so while this can be nerve wracking, we have seen this before. To date, U.S. stocks have not seen much debt ceiling-related pressure. However, uncertainty about the debt limit has begun to create volatility in the U.S. Treasury Bill market. Wespath’s Amy Bulger highlighted this trend in our latest Markets at a Glance video: