The Moody’s announcement sent the yield on a 30-year Treasury bond to a high of 5.01% at one point on Monday. Bond yields rise as bond prices fall. When a selloff hits and demand for bonds dries up, it sends bond prices lower. In turn, bond yields move higher.

Moody's downgrade of the U.S. credit rating made it the third of the three major ratings agencies to downgrade U.S. credit since 2011 amid widening budget deficits.

Mortgage rates jumped higher on Monday following Moody's downgrade of U.S. debt, adding to the headwinds facing homebuyers.

The move came as Republicans seek to approve a large package of tax cuts, spending hikes and safety-net reductions which could add trillions of dollars in U.S. debt.

The U.S. government is spending far more than it takes in as revenue, causing ever-rising debt — and there is no sign that will change anytime soon. The big picture: Those facts are well-known to anybody who has taken a cursory look at the government's books.

All three major U.S. stock market indexes rose Monday afternoon, following an earlier selloff sparked by long-dated Treasury yields surpassing the 5% mark after the financial ratings agency Moody’s downgraded the U.S. government’s credit rating late last week, citing rising debt and interest payment ratios.

Sen. Ashley Moody will roll out a measure Wednesday that will expedite the removal of criminal illegal immigrants from the United States involved in gangs, foreign terrorist organizations or convicted of any felony on U.

If a planned fiscal consolidation in Colombia fails to stabilize public debt and comply with fiscal rules, it could lead to a ratings downgrade for the Andean nation, a top Moody's analyst said on Tuesday.