US debt hits $14trn ceiling

The US treasury is battling to slash spending after the country's national debt soared to $14trn, reaching a self-imposed limit set by Congress last century.

Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner has written to Congress saying he will suspend investment into two large government pension funds in order to prevent a breach of the limit, according to the BBC. The move will buy the country some time, stopping any breach until 2 August, while Congress negotiate an increase to the limit. "I have written to Congress on previous occasions regarding the importance of timely action to increase the debt limit in order to protect the full faith and credit of the United States and avoid catastrophic economic consequences for citizens," Geithner said in a...