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☆ Debt ceiling worries bubble up in US stock options market
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Saqib Iqbal Ahmed | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NEW YORK, April 26 (Reuters) - Worries over a debt ceiling showdown are creeping into U.S. options markets, as investors grow increasingly concerned that lawmakers will be unable to hammer out a deal in coming weeks, potentially sparking stock volatility as a key deadline nears. In the options market, however, worries are bubbling as some analysts warn the so-called X-date, after which the government is no longer able to pay all its bills, could come in the first half of June. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Tuesday warned that failure by Congress to raise the government's debt ceiling - and the resulting default - would trigger an "economic catastrophe" that would send interest rates higher for years to come. AWKWARD TIMINGLegislative standoffs over debt limits this last decade have largely been resolved before they could ripple out into markets. "You are going to have all these fundamental pressures -- and then our friends in Washington aren't going to be able to agree on what to do with the debt ceiling," he said.

☆ Markets are starting to get worried about US debt default
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Elisabeth Buchwald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

But that’s starting to change, in what is shaping up to be a nail-biting game of debt ceiling squabbling as the shot clock is winding down. When the debt ceiling was breached in January, five-year CDS spreads hovered around 35 basis points. How does this compare to the 2011 debt ceiling debacle? In 2011 a debt ceiling standoff led to credit-rating agency Standard and Poor’s downgrade of US debt from the highest possible status, AAA, to AA+. After that occurred, the cost of insuring against US debt for a year jumped to 63 basis points.

☆ Jobs are strong, inflation is cooling — yet recession worries remain
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Christine Romans | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

In the optimist camp is Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who told CNN’s Fareed Zakaria last week a damaging recession can be averted. “I do think there is a path to bring down inflation while maintaining what I think all of us would regard as a strong labor market.”After months of inflation at close to 40-year highs, prices are cooling. By most measures, the job market is stronger today than it was in February 2020, before the Covid pandemic crashed the global economy. “I think the strong labor market and bringing down inflation are compatible goals,” Yellen said. Another read is that a recession, if there is one, will be mild and brief, without a big spike in the jobless rate.

☆ Rolling EU debt would boost investment and markets
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Rebecca Christie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

From 2009 to 2019, the EU sold just 78 billion euros’ worth of debt into global capital markets. As of January 2023, outstanding issuance stood at 344 billion euros, including more than 275 billion euros sold since 2020. EU debt is in the hands of more than 1,000 investors from more than 70 different countries, according to the bloc’s investor relations team. Contrary to what proponents of Teutonic austerity claim, more EU debt would be safer EU debt. EU debt is rated AAA by Moody’s, Fitch, Scope and DBRS.

☆ How to Invest in the S&P 500
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-12 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: +9 min

The S&P 500 index, short for Standard & Poor’s 500 index, is one of the most widely traded and talked about stock indexes in the world. The Largest S&P 500 Index Funds Ticker Symbols Expense Ratio Fund Size Vanguard S&P 500 Index Fund VOO, VFFSX, VFIAX 0.010%-0.040% $792 billion SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY 0.095% $380 billion Fidelity 500 Index Fund FXAIX 0.015% $374 billion iShares Core S&P 500 ETF IVV 0.030% $307 billion Vanguard Institutional Index Fund VINIX, VIIIX 0.020%-0.035% $238 billion Morningstar DirectS&P 500 mutual funds vs. S&P 500 ETFsAnother thing to consider is whether you want to buy a traditional mutual fund or an exchange-traded fund, which trades like a stock. Equal weight, value or ESG S&P 500 fundsMoreover, if you’re concerned about the heavy weighting of certain sectors in the S&P index you can invest instead in an equal weight S&P 500 index fund or add those shares to your portfolio. Alternatively, you can buy an S&P 500 value fund, which represents stocks that are considered undervalued or an S&P 500 growth fund, which represents the fastest-growing companies in the S&P 500. Another variation on the S&P 500 index theme incorporates ESG (environmental, social and governance) values while maintaining similar overall industry group weights as the S&P 500.

☆ Here’s what will happen to the economy as the debt ceiling drama deepens
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Alicia Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Minneapolis CNN —After the United States hit its debt ceiling on Thursday, the Treasury Department is now undertaking “extraordinary measures” to keep paying the government’s bills. And Americans — many people — would lose their jobs and certainly their borrowing costs would rise.”Dire warnings of debt ceiling trouble aren’t new. “2011 was the first time in a long time that we came close to a debt ceiling breach,” he said. “I think you would be hard pressed to say [the debt ceiling debacle] was a positive thing,” he said. Considering the potential consequences in the United States and abroad, Sheiner believes the debt ceiling will be lifted or suspended — eventually.

“Mission Hospital used to be where everyone would go if they wanted good care,” Jaquins said, reflecting on her previous experiences with the health care system. Sue Fischer is a longtime HCA employee who’s concerned about patient care in her facility. “We were a great system as Mission Health and we’re an even better system as HCA Mission Health,” she said. “Delays in care is the biggest patient care issue I see because of staffing,” Hernandez said. According to the CMS ranking system, Mission Hospital currently holds an above-average overall quality rating — four stars out of a possible five.

☆ Divided America will unite under economic duress
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Ben Winck | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

That will happen when a new term begins in 2023, making it difficult for American legislators to accomplish goals. But one thing needs to happen: Congress must raise the debt ceiling so the U.S. government can continue to chug along. The debt ceiling, currently at $31.4 trillion, needs to go higher for government employees to get paid and welfare checks to be delivered, among other things. If only because they are all vying for a win in the presidential election in 2024, Congress could unite under high inflation and economic duress. Republicans will take control of the House of Representatives in 2023, making a bipartisan solution necessary to lifting the limit.

☆ Stocks week ahead: How the midterms could affect Wall Street
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-06 | by ( Paul R. La Monica | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Investors are more than happy when politicians bicker but don’t actually enact any new laws that may hurt corporate profits. If Republicans get the House, tax hikes are dead in the water,” said David Wagner, a portfolio manager with Aptus Capital Advisors. That’s because there are some areas of consensus for the White House and Republican lawmakers. Congress and the White House may spend more time bickering than trying to pass legislation. Ameriprise chief market strategist Anthony Saglimbene said on a conference call last week about the midterms that stocks have historically gone up after elections, no matter which party controls the White House and Congress.

☆ Why is the Powerball prize at a record? Thank Fed Chairman Jerome Powell
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The current annuity prize is beating the record set in January 2016 when three winners split a prize advertised at $1.586 billion. Each took their share of the cash value, which added up to $983.5 million, $200 million more than cash prize in Saturday’s “record” drawing. That advertised then-record annuity prize was 61% greater than the cash prize. This time, the estimated annuity prize is 104% greater than the cash prize. If it was the same ratio as in 2016, Saturday’s annuity prize would be only $1.26 billion.

☆ UK brings budget forward in another attempt to reassure markets
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Kwarteng announced the Oct. 31 date in a letter to the Treasury on Monday, pulling his midterm budget forward by more than three weeks in an attempt to reassure rattled markets and rebellious party colleagues. He also confirmed that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), the independent fiscal watchdog, will publish its assessment of the budget on the same day. Investors have been awaiting clarity on a revised date for the budget, which was initially set for November 23. It was widely expected to be brought forward after Kwarteng’s “mini” budget on Sept. 23 crashed the pound and sent shockwaves through financial markets with its promise of £45 billion ($49.8 billion) of unfunded tax cuts. The pound has recovered all of its losses but UK government bond yields remain higher than they were before the crash.

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