World News Today Live Updates: US debt crosses $40 trillion threshold after doubling across Trump and Biden administrations
US national debt has more than doubled since 2017, driven by pandemic borrowing, fiscal policy choices and persistent tax-and-spending imbalances.
· The Indian Express · JoinThe total US national debt has surpassed $40 trillion for the first time, the Treasury Department said on Wednesday (Aug 19), as rising interest costs and spending pressures deepen concerns over the country’s fiscal outlook. The Treasury’s latest daily cash and debt balances statement showed total public debt outstanding at $40.047 trillion, which includes $32.266 trillion held by the public and $7.782 trillion in intragovernmental debt. The federal government’s IOU, in less than a decade, has more than doubled, with COVID-19 borrowing, tax policies and long-running spending imbalances driving the rise.
Trump announces ‘economic D-day’ against Iran
US President Donald Trump announced what he described as the “most crushing economic operation” ever directed against Iran, warning that any nation conducting business with Tehran will face severe economic consequences. In a statement released on Wednesday (Jul 19), Trump stated that while he had previously offered Iran a deal, the Islamic Republic failed to take advantage of the opportunity. “No one has given the Islamic Republic of Iran a greater opportunity to make a Deal than me. TRAGICALLY, for them, they have failed to take it. Therefore, today, I am announcing the MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY,” he said in a post on his Truth Social account.
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Iran’s military signals shift from retaliation to offence
Iran’s military is signalling a shift from retaliation to offence six months into its war with the United States, with analysts saying Tehran may be seeking greater leverage to break the stalemate, according to AFP. Since US-Israeli strikes launched the war on February 28, Tehran has largely described its attacks on the United States, Israel and Gulf countries as retaliation for strikes against Iran. However, Iranian officials are now openly prioritising offensive operations while maintaining control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
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Live Updates
Aug 20, 2026 11:20 AM IST
Strait of Hormuz shipping traffic shows no rise
Strait of Hormuz shipping traffic showed no uptick as US-Iran talks stalled, signalling continued uncertainty over the strategic waterway, the latest shipping data showed, according to Reuters.
Commodity vessel transits totalled nine on Wednesday, unchanged from the previous day, according to Kpler data.
Aug 20, 2026 10:57 AM IST
Bangladesh presidential election: Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir emerges as frontrunner
Bangladesh is set to elect the country's new president in the first contested presidential elections since 1991 on Thursday, with Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir emerging as the frontrunner for the position.
He is facing opposition candidate Oli Ahmed in the contest.
The voting will be held at Parliament from 2 pm to 5 pm, according to the Election Commission.
Alamgir, 78, is the candidate of the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party, whereas Ahmed, 84, chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party, is contesting as the candidate of the Jamaat-e-Islami-led alliance.
Aug 20, 2026 10:44 AM IST
South Korea estimates North Korea possesses between 80 and 120 nuclear warheads
South Korea estimates North Korea has 80 to 120 nuclear warheads, far above President Donald Trump's recent estimate of 57 nuclear weapons, Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back said on Thursday.
He told lawmakers that Pyongyang was believed to have 80 to 120 warheads but cautioned that it was difficult to determine the exact figure.
"We usually see it as around 80 to 120, but it is considerably limited to state an exact number," Ahn told a parliamentary committee.
On being asked bout Trump's remarks a day earlier that Kim possessed 57 "very powerful nuclear weapons", Ahn said, "the numbers appear somewhat different."
Aug 20, 2026 10:17 AM IST
Russian air strikes kill 8 in Ukraine's Kyiv, injure 33, says mayor
Russian air strikes on Kyiv killed eight people and injured 33, the city’s mayor said, in the latest deadly attack amid the ongoing Ukraine war.
Aug 20, 2026 10:02 AM IST
US debt crosses $40 trillion threshold after doubling across Trump and Biden administrations
The total US national debt has surpassed $40 trillion for the first time, the Treasury Department said on Wednesday (Aug 19), as rising interest costs and spending pressures deepen concerns over the country’s fiscal outlook.
The Treasury's latest daily cash and debt balances statement showed total public debt outstanding at $40.047 trillion, which includes $32.266 trillion held by the public and $7.782 trillion in intragovernmental debt. The federal government's IOU, in less than a decade, has more than doubled, with COVID-19 borrowing, tax policies and long-running spending imbalances driving the rise.
Aug 20, 2026 10:02 AM IST
Iran’s military signals shift from retaliation to offence
Iran’s military is signalling a shift from retaliation to offence six months into its war with the United States, with analysts saying Tehran may be seeking greater leverage to break the stalemate, according to AFP. Since US-Israeli strikes launched the war on February 28, Tehran has largely described its attacks on the United States, Israel and Gulf countries as retaliation for strikes against Iran. However, Iranian officials are now openly prioritising offensive operations while maintaining control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
Aug 20, 2026 10:01 AM IST
Trump announces ‘economic D-day’ against Iran
US President Donald Trump announced what he described as the “most crushing economic operation” ever directed against Iran, warning that any nation conducting business with Tehran will face severe economic consequences. In a statement released on Wednesday (Jul 19), Trump stated that while he had previously offered Iran a deal, the Islamic Republic failed to take advantage of the opportunity.
“No one has given the Islamic Republic of Iran a greater opportunity to make a Deal than me. TRAGICALLY, for them, they have failed to take it. Therefore, today, I am announcing the MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY,” he said in a post on his Truth Social account.
Comparing the “operation” to an “Economic D-Day,” Trump said that the isolation campaign would be the most crushing ever enacted against a country.
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