
How the U.S. Debt Ceiling Works: Inside the $41.1 Trillion Limit
The U.S. debt ceiling caps how much the Treasury can borrow to pay bills Congress already approved. Here is how the $41.1 trillion limit works and when it binds next.
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The U.S. debt ceiling caps how much the Treasury can borrow to pay bills Congress already approved. Here is how the $41.1 trillion limit works and when it binds next.

The FOMC is expected to hold rates at 3.50% to 3.75% and the prime rate at 6.75% on June 17, with the new dot plot and a hot May inflation print the real story.

Treasury’s $22 billion 30-year auction stopped at 5.02% on June 11, the first back-to-back 5% sales since 2007, days before the June 16-17 Fed meeting.

May CPI rose 0.5% for the month and 4.2% over the year, the first 4% reading since 2023. Core held at 2.9% as the Fed heads into its June 16-17 meeting.

The U.S. prime rate is 6.75%, but the Fed does not set it. Here is how banks derive prime from the federal funds rate and what it means for your loans.

The average rate on U.S. interest-bearing debt rose to 3.353% in May, the highest since October 2025, as low-coupon debt refinances into higher market yields.
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