At a mid-day press conference, President Obama highlighted the fact that his administration and congressional Republicans were close to securing a compromise in order to meet the August 2 deadline.
Stocks surged on the news with the S&P 500 index gaining 18.47 to 1323.91.
Earlier today, Moody’s Investors Service reported that five of the 15 states in the United States that carry Aaa ratings could receive downgrades in the event negotiations to raise the debt ceiling fail. Tennessee, Virginia, Maryland, New Mexico, and South Carolina are under review.
