High interest rates could balloon the national debt

What happens to government debt, the budget deficit, and the overall economy if interest rates stay elevated? For a new report, the Congressional Budget Office crunched the numbers. By 2056, public debt would grow to an eye-popping 222% of GDP. Plus: Trump administration cuts decimated soil conservation programs, a new report highlights the impact of private equity investments on climate risk, and an uneventful Trump-Xi summit ends with a promise of more talks to come.

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Read the stories in today’s episode:

• TTYL? Trump-Xi talks end without much to show (marketplace.org/story/2026/09/25/the-trumpxi-s…)
• What happens to the deficit and the national debt if interest rates stay high? (marketplace.org/story/2026/09/25/what-high-int…)
• U.S. farmers lost conservation experts in Trump’s federal cuts. Now they’re hurting for help (marketplace.org/story/2026/09/25/trump-cuts-to…)
• Private equity gets a grade on climate risks (marketplace.org/story/2026/09/25/how-private-e…)