Debt default ‘X-date’ calculations aim to figure out when the US may run short of cash

WASHINGTON (AP) — For all the concern over when the government might run out of money to cover all its bills, it turns out that no one can be absolutely sure exactly when the country faces a potential default — the dreaded “X-date.”

Calculating when the country is going to run short of cash requires monitoring major fluctuations in cash flowing into and out of the Treasury and factoring in the timing and size of big payments coming due, among other factors.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned Congress that the government could default as early as June 1. But amid all the squabbling over the debt, the X-date itself has become a subject of political rancor.