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US debt ceiling

US debt ceiling
The debt ceiling is the legal limit on the amount of money the US government can borrow. Since 1960, Congress has increased the debt ceiling 79 times - 49 times under Republican presidents and 30 times under Democratic presidents.
Kevin Warsh, Trump’s nominee for Fed chair, speaks during the Sohn Investment Conference in New York City, in 2017. Photo: Reuters
Banking & finance

‘America First’ Fed? Why China economists doubt Trump’s pick can boost US dollar

Kevin Warsh unlikely to deliver long-term rebound while central bank independence still at risk, analysts say.

US-China relations

China dumps more US debt, buys other assets as Trump targets Powell

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US-Venezuela conflict

Opinion | Forget Venezuela and Greenland – here is the real trillion-dollar question

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United States

Opinion | Will the US republic survive stress test of Trump’s presidency?

America is facing a rare array of pressures including expanding executive powers, strategic dependencies, legitimacy deficits and fiscal rigidity.

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Protesters gather near the Broadview Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility in Broadview, Illinois, to demand that the National Guard leave Chicago, on October 9. Photo: AFP
US-China trade war

China sells US Treasuries, buys gold

Chinese holdings of US government debt fell to US$731 billion in July, trailing Japan and the UK, while gold reserves kept on climbing.

China debt

In China, Ray Dalio discusses global debt issues as Beijing seeks his counsel

With local-level debt still posing risks in China, while US borrowing accelerates, Beijing turns to the Wall Street veteran for guidance while navigating precarious financial waters.

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China debt

As China defuses its time bomb of debt, US hears the ticking intensify

Why do analysts see America’s debt situation as ‘more concerning’, and why is China’s situation a ‘big advantage’?

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US President Donald Trump signed his “Big Beautiful Bill” into law last month, raising the debt ceiling by US$5 trillion. Photo: Getty Images
China debt

Why did a Chinese economist slam Ray Dalio on debt situations in US, China?

Xu Gao’s 9,000-word article, ‘Where Did Dalio Go Wrong on National Debt?’, comes as China’s Politburo is preparing to set policy tone for rest of year.

Cryptocurrency

Opinion | In debt-bloated US, stablecoin a new financial weapon in the making

Forget austerity, Trump has ‘big, beautiful’ spending plans and is exploring US bank-backed stablecoin to turn the spreadsheets around.

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Donald Trump

Trump tax law projected to add US$3.4 trillion to US deficits

Trump’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ was signed into law on July 4 after months of negotiations with congressional Republicans.

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US President Donald Trump. Photo:Zuma Press Wire / dpa
US-China trade war

China cuts US Treasury stockpiles to the lowest level since 2009

Beijing shed more US debt in May as trade tensions flared and Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ sparked alarm.

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Chinese yuan banknotes are sandwiched between several US dollar bills. Photo: Fernando Gutierrez-Juarez/dpa
US-China relations

Will Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ offer opportunities for China?

Some analysts believe the tax and spending act will ‘cause some trouble’, but others say there could be an upside for Beijing.

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United States

Opinion | Decades of America’s ‘exorbitant privilege’ is ending, thanks to Trump

The US president is systematically destroying faith in the dollar in global financial markets and among governments and central banks.

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Banking & finance

Did Trump get his ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ at the US dollar’s expense?

Analysts say the sweeping budget act resolves the immediate debt crisis, but the resultant deficit could accelerate global de-dollarisation.

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US President Donald Trump’s sweeping budget act, soon to become law, raises worries over the country’s long-term debt burden. Photo: AFP
Donald Trump

Trump’s budget bill is a debt bomb. Can the ‘Pennsylvania Plan’ defuse it?

New framework offers recommendations to reduce foreign holdings of US debt – a sum estimated to grow by trillions if spending bill is passed.

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US President Donald Trump hopes to turn his signature budget bill into law before a self-imposed deadline of July 4. Photo: AP
US-China trade war

China sells US Treasuries

China’s holdings of US government bonds fell to US$757 billion in April, behind those of Japan and the UK, as its gold reserves rose.

US-China trade war

China cuts US Treasury stockpiles to 16-year low amid Trump’s trade war

As tariffs rattled markets in April, Beijing’s US debt holdings fell to their lowest level since 2009.

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United States

Trump’s big tax-cut bill advances as debt concerns mount

Millions could lose Medicaid coverage under the bill, which analysts say will add trillions of dollars to US debt over the next 10 years.

Clouds roll over the US Capitol in Washington ahead of a rare Sunday night session of the House Budget Committee. Photo: Reuters
Banking & finance

Moody’s downgrade, US debt fears revive mini ‘sell America’ trade

Rating downgrade risks reinforcing Wall Street’s growing worries over the US sovereign bond market.

United States

Opinion | Mar-a-Lago Accord a high-stakes gamble on world’s trust in US dollar

A scheme to devalue the dollar proposed by one of the US president’s economic advisers should alarm both Americans and the wider world.

China technology

Opinion | How DeepSeek’s disruption could finally burst the US stock bubble

US stocks bounced back on DeepSeek doubts. But it’s the real deal and it threatens assumptions of US AI dominance that underpin the market.

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TV news at the Nasdaq headquarters in Times Square highlights the extent of the market drop on January 27 in New York, US. Photo: AFP
Diplomacy

Macroscope | Trump’s ‘big stick diplomacy’ won’t go far in today’s world system

Conflicting monetary goals and budget constraints will undermine the administration’s ability to exert influence from a position of strength.

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American and South Korean soldiers salute during a change of command and change of responsibility ceremony at a US military base, in Seoul, South Korea, in 2017. Photo: AP
Banking & finance

Opinion | In a world fraught with risk, Trump will add to the bumps

Amid increasing geopolitical uncertainty and trade tensions, investors are counting on the US central bank to keep printing money.

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United States

Opinion | Why a Trump economic boom is much less likely this time around

Trump is once again inheriting a strong US economy but the world is more volatile, and US debt and interest rates are much higher.

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Climate change

Outside In | Nature needs saving but where will the West find the money?

However leaders feel about biodiversity and global warming, there is almost no money where their mouths are.

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A ranger reaches out towards female northern white rhino Najin, one of the last two northern white rhinos on the planet, in her enclosure at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya on August 23, 2019. Photo: AP
United States

Opinion | Trump’s tariffs won’t tackle the US deficit that really matters

Far more pressing than the trade deficit is the government’s budget deficit and rapid debt accumulation, which truly risk America’s future.

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Former US president and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (left) gestures next to US Senator from Ohio and 2024 Republican vice-president candidate J.D. Vance during the first day of the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, on July 15. Trump has promised sweeping tariffs on China if elected president. Photo: AFP/Getty Images/TNS
Banking & finance

Opinion | How America’s national debt has become the world’s liability

While the risk of America’s debt is shared by global lenders and investors, US leverage makes the burden far from fair.

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United States

Opinion | US must ground its economic policy in reality, sooner rather than later

Government spending has played a big role in boosting the US’ consumption and jobs figures, but how long can this last?

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