The US national debt jumped by $246.96 billion between February 28 and March 17-nearly half of the $502.75 billion borrowed so far this year.
Total debt now stands at $39.02 trillion, up roughly 15% year-to-date.
Desmond Lachman, former deputy director of the International Monetary Fund, warned that rising 10-year Treasury yields since the Iran conflict began signal declining foreign appetite for US government bonds.
“In normal times of geopolitical stress, investors flock to Treasuries, pushing yields down,” Lachman said. “Instead, yields are rising-an ominous sign.”
He cautioned that sustained high yields could trigger higher mortgage and auto loan rates, a stock market correction, and stress in a financial system inflated by years of easy-money lending.