Speaker McCarthy: Differences over spending continue still exist

US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced on Wednesday that they are sending their negotiators to the White House to try and wrap up the debt-limit negotiations.

McCarthy continued by pointing out that there were still disagreements on expenditure, but he added that he believed they might advance today.

After these remarks, markets are still risk apprehensive. The S&P 500 Index was down 0.8% at 4,111 as of the time of writing, while the US Dollar Index was up 0.3% on the day at 103.83.

The US could breach the debt ceiling as soon as next week, plunging the stock market by nearly half if a protracted default ensues, according to a White House projection. Stock investors, however, don’t seem worried — at least for now. All of the major stock indices have inched upward over the past five days, defying alarm of a potential economic cataclysm.