US debt deal fails to lift market

A deal by US lawmakers to raise the country's debt ceiling passed its first hurdle last night but failed to lift shares after dreadful manufacturing data.

The House of Representatives passed the bill by 269 votes to 161, with politicians backing plans to raise the debt limit by up to $2.4trn. The bill will now pass on to the Senate today as the country looks to avoid defaulting by agreeing the deal, buying itself time to tackle its economic problems. However, US markets - which slumped yesterday after the release of manufacturing data - remained lower. The S&P 500 closed down nearly 0.5% at 1,286.94, while the Dow ended the session off 10.75 points at 12,132.49. Shares slumped after manufacturing data showed activity had fallen to...