US Senate trudges toward passing $1 trillion infrastructure bill

Anil Panchal FXStreet

Early Monday morning in Asia, late Sunday in the US, Reuters came out with the updates from the US Senate where the policymakers jostle over President Joe Biden’s infrastructure spending plan during the weekend.

The latest news marks slow progress after the initial agreement to finalize the details. The news piece said, “The effort has been held up by opposition from Republican Senator Bill Hagerty, a freshman from Tennessee who objects to fast-tracking the legislation due in part to its effect on the federal budget deficit.”

Key quotes

The Senate convened at noon EDT (16:00 GMT) and was expected to hold two procedural votes on Sunday evening, unless Republicans and Democrats can reach an agreement on amendments to the package that was the result of months of bipartisan talks.

The legislation took an important step forward on Saturday, when 67 lawmakers including 18 Republicans voted to limit debate on the measure, comfortably surpassing a 60-vote threshold required for most legislation in the 100-seat Senate.

But unless all 100 senators consent to expedite the process, passage would have to wait until Monday or Tuesday under parliamentary rules that require legislation to move forward slowly and in stages.

After the Senate passes the bipartisan bill, it would go to the House of Representatives, which Democrats also control by a narrow margin.

FX implications

Given the cautious optimism over the passage of the much-awaited stimulus, global markets began the trading week in Asia mostly around Friday’s levels while waiting for more clues.

Read: AUD/USD remains pressured around 0.7350 amid broad USD strength, China CPI eyed

Author

Anil Panchal

FXStreet

Anil Panchal has nearly 15 years of experience in tracking financial markets. With a keen interest in macroeconomics, Anil aptly tracks global news/updates and stays well-informed about the global financial moves and their implications.

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