Global Economic Fallout Looms as US Debt Ceiling Crisis Continues.

A last-minute deal to raise the US debt limit could still harm the economy, even if it avoids a default. Similar standoffs in 2011 and 2013 caused stocks to tumble, consumer and business confidence to slide, and borrowing costs to rise. The economy is already fragile and on the brink of recession, and an 11th-hour agreement that narrowly averts default but frays nerves, sinks stocks, and pushes up interest rates could still do some damage. Even if a deal is reached, the deadlock has created some uncertainty, and yields on short-term Treasury notes have soared.