What about the Key economic data, U.S. government shuts down

The U.S. government shut down much of its operations Wednesday after an eleventh-hour spending bill backed by the Republican party failed to clear a Senate vote, amid persistent resistance from the Democrats.

This is the 15th shutdown since 1981 and the second under President Donald Trump, who used the opportunity to threaten the dismissal of yet more federal workers.

Tens of thousands have already been fired this year and over 150,000 workers are due to leave federal payrolls this week after taking a buyout, the biggest exodus in 80 years.

There was no clear path out of the impasse, and many feared this shutdown could last longer than the budget-related closures of the past given the sharp political differences between the two sides.

The longest government shutdown in U.S. history stretched over 35 days during December 2018 and January 2019 during Trump’s first term in office, in a dispute over border security.

The shutdown is likely to halt the release of Friday’s closely watched September employment report, slow air travel, suspend scientific research, withhold pay from U.S. troops and lead to the furlough of 750,000 federal workers at a daily cost of $400 million.