Today’s business news headlines include a report that the US Treasury Department is warning that the federal government will not be able to meet its debt obligations by June unless Congress raises the statutory borrowing limit. Another article discusses Russia’s defence ministry saying that its forces have taken control of the city of Soledar. And another article talks about how the interiors of the new Vayve Mobility mini-van are as good as the interiors of a small sedan.
Russia’s defence ministry says its forces have captured Soledar
Soledar, a small town near the city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, has been the site of intense battles over the past five days. Russian forces and Ukrainian units have fought for control of the salt-mining town.
A Ukrainian soldier told POLITICO on condition of anonymity that Russian troops had sent the first wave of soldiers in the battle. The Russians, he said, sent paratroopers, special forces, and regular Russian soldiers. He also said that the Russians had launched heavy air and artillery strikes on the area.
During the night, heavy fighting continued in the town, Russian military blogs reported. CNN reported mortar and rocket fire near the town. Prigozhin, a leader of the mercenary Wagner Group, declared that his mercenary forces had taken control of the town.
Prigozhin, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, said that his group had captured the entire city of Soledar. However, Ukrainian officials disputed his claim. They claimed that more than 100 Russian troops were killed by a missile strike in the battle.
Prigozhin accused the Russian defence establishment of stealing his victory. “The PMC (primary military command) constantly talked about an undefined presence, which was preventing us from capturing the town,” he wrote on Telegram.
America’s treasury secretary warns that the government will be unable to service its debt by June unless Congress raises the statutory borrowing limit
The United States is close to reaching its statutory debt limit, which will restrict the amount of money that the federal government can borrow. The Treasury Department has warned that unless Congress raises the limit, the government will be unable to pay its bills.
As of January 19, the statutory debt limit is at $31.4 trillion. This includes social security and Medicare benefits. Unless the debt limit is raised, the Treasury will have to take “extraordinary measures” to pay its bills.
This will include suspending new investments in two retiree funds. It will also halt reinvestments in the Government Securities Investment Fund, a part of the federal employee savings plan.
While this is the first time that the Treasury has used these measures, the department has used similar measures in the past.
Yellen warned that failing to raise the statutory debt limit would have serious consequences for the country. Among other things, failure to pay obligations would cause harm to the economy and global financial stability.
Yellen noted that if the debt limit is not raised, the government will have to resort to extraordinary measures to pay its bills. Those measures can last weeks or months.
There are several ways to raise the statutory debt limit, including using reconciliation, which allows for passage of legislation with a simple majority vote in the Senate. However, it is unlikely that Congress will move quickly to pass this kind of legislation.
Vayve Mobility’s interiors are as good as a small sedan
A slew of startups have come out of the woods with an overpriced electric car in tow. Vayve is no different. It has a pre-production version of its upcoming two seater which piques the interest of potential investors. The company has an eye on a bigger pot and is willing to take the risk. Vayve’s top brass is a veritable who’s who when it comes to e-mobility and has no problem stepping up to the plate. As per the likes of the CEO, the company is keen on raising a large sum in the near future. Notably, the aforementioned company has recently signed an MOU with the city of Pune, a sign of mutual respect and camaraderie. Moreover, Vayve has announced its presence at the 2023 Auto Expo in the city. Among other boffo news, Vayve has also signed a pact with the Indian government to provide free telephony and WiFi to public transport users and their kin.
The aforementioned two seater is expected to be priced between 10 lakhs and 15 lakhs. This is a conservative estimate considering Vayve’s current valuation of around 25 crores. Its product portfolio consists of the aforementioned two seater, a four seater, and a sedan.
