FURTHER FURTHER READING
- T-bill action is terrifying.
- T-bill action is not terrifying.
- But some money funds are definitely avoiding short-maturity T-bills.
- An open letter to foreign leaders worried about the US debt ceiling.
- Speaking of which, China and Japan aren't going to dump their Treasuries.
- Still, a debt ceiling breach would indeed be a disaster.
- Though the super-premium Treasury bonds solution is getting traction.
FT EVENING ROUND-UP
Obama steps up pressure on Republicans: "US President Barack Obama said he is "exploring all contingencies" in the event Congress fails to increase the country's borrowing limit, but warned that there was no "magic wand" to brush away the threat of a default on US debt. "No options are good in that scenario," Mr Obama told reporters, shrugging off the possibility that the White House could use creative solutions – from invoking the 14th amendment of the constitution to minting a $1tn coin – to keep borrowing." (Financial Times)
IMF tells nations to raise their game: "The world faces years of sluggish growth unless leading economies undertake difficult economic reforms, the International Monetary Fund warned on Tuesday in a downbeat World Economic Outlook. Launching its twice-yearly forecasts amid rising tensions over the US government shutdown, the fund trimmed its predictions of global expansion for 2013 and 2014 with all of the downgrade stemming from weaker prospects in emerging economies." (Financial Times)
Buyout debt returns to pre-crisis levels in US: "The amount of debt in US leveraged buyouts has increased to levels reminiscent of the boom years before the financial crisis, as private equity groups tap buoyant credit markets. Private equity investors aim to boost their returns by using more bank debt or bonds than their own cash to fund takeovers. By the end of September, the debt component in US deals, which is serviced by the profits of the purchased companies, equalled 5.3 times the companies' earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda), according to S&P Capital IQ." (Financial Times)
