The debt limit, or debt ceiling, means "the upper limit on the amount of money the U.S. government can borrow to pay off its debts."
There are concerns that exceeding the debt limit will seriously damage the US economy.
It is stated that even exceeding the said limit for a short time may lead to a decrease in the real gross domestic product (GDP), the loss of approximately 2 million jobs, the unemployment rate to rise from the current 3.5 percent level to about 5 percent, and an increase in borrowing costs.
