THE BOTTOM LINE
Why Bessent’s bond buyback programme should worry us
The government isn’t retiring debt; it’s swapping expensive long-term IOUs for more short-term borrowing
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AUG 19 brought two pieces of news that belong in the same sentence, even if the US Treasury Department would rather they didn’t.
First, the country’s gross national debt crossed US$40 trillion, less than five months after passing US$39 trillion in March.
Second, in what one economist called a “surprise announcement”, the Treasury said it would increase the size of its government debt repurchases by “at least double”.
