Yellen: US Default Could See Financial Markets "Break"

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has issued her sternest warning yet of the consequences of a US federal government default ahead of today's key White House meeting between President Biden and Congressional Leaders.

• Reuters carrying some snippets of remarks delivered by Yellen at an ongoing summit hosted by the Independent Community Bankers of America.
• Yellen: "A US default would cause an 'unprecedented economic and financial storm;' resulting income shock could lead to recession."
• Yellen: "Default could see financial markets 'break' with worldwide panic triggering margin calls, runs and fire sales."
• Yellen: "US default could disrupt government operations such as air traffic control, law enforcement, national defense and telecommunications."
• Yellen warning follows a letter she sent to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) yesterday, shortly after his pessimistic assessment of staff-level debt limit negotiations stating, "There is no good reason [...] to trigger a manufactured crisis of our own creation.”
• The White House debt limit meeting is scheduled to begin at 15:00 ET 20:00 BST with around 80 mins penciled into Biden's official schedule. The meeting is widely viewed as the last opportunity for deal before the standoff becomes a full-blown crisis.
• See today's US Daily Brief for more analysis.