US government bond yields have pushed past 5% for the first time since 2007, and that is bad news for borrowers, homebuyers, stocks, and the companies building AI data centers.

• Investors are selling US government bonds, sending yields to levels last seen before the 2008 crash.
• Higher yields make every loan more expensive — mortgages are already above 6.7%, and far more sellers than buyers are now stuck in the housing market.
• The oil crisis is making it worse: the Strait of Hormuz is still blocked and a Saudi pipeline is down, pushing gas and diesel prices up and knocking global oil demand down sharply.
• Private lending is the weak link — default rates on private loans hit a record in August, and these borrowers have no printing press to fall back on.
• Washington is betting everything on AI data centers, which now account for a big slice of US growth, while tech stocks have started falling.

Outlook: If the war drags on and yields keep climbing, expect more defaults, a weaker housing market, and a tougher hand for the US going into the China summit.