April 25, 2023

WASHINGTON, April 25 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Tuesday warned that failure by Congress to raise the government's debt ceiling - and the resulting default - would trigger an "economic catastrophe" that would send interest rates higher for years to come.

Yellen, in remarks prepared for a Washington event with business executives from California, said a default on U.S. debt would result in job losses, while driving household payments on mortgages, auto loans and credit cards higher.

She said it was a "basic responsibility" of Congress to increase or suspend the $31.4 trillion borrowing cap, warning that a default would threaten the economic progress that the United States has made since the COVID-19 pandemic.

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