The Day at a Glance | May 22 2023

*In a race against time, President of the United States, Joe Biden, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, will meet today to continue discussions regarding the debt ceiling. 

*President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, denied that Russia has captured the city of Bahamut, after the head of the Russian mercenary group, Wagner, claimed that they have taken over this city, which has more symbolic than strategic significance. 

*In Mexico, the value of production in the construction companies decreased by -1.1% on a monthly basis during March. 

Economic environment

With only 10 days until the potential scenario of default, President of the United States, Joe Biden, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, will meet on Monday to continue debt ceiling discussions. Today`s meeting could bring positive news after McCarthy described his call with President Biden yesterday as “productive”. Similarly, following his trip to Asia, Biden told reporters that the call “went well”. However, unless a compromise is reached in the coming days to increase the debt ceiling, the United States may not be able to meet its debt obligations, triggering a new episode of volatility in financial markets, not to mention the direct impact on the economy. The Republican caucus is demanding a significant spending cut to bring it back to 2022 levels in exchange for increasing the debt ceiling, while the Democrats want to maintain spending at current levels. As a result, reaching a bipartisan agreement that ensures enough votes for approval has been difficult, given the fact that Republicans control the House (222-213), while Democrats have a slim majority in the Senate (51-49).