Stock Market

TIP: Published monthly, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) tracks the cost of a basket of goods that includes housing, food, transportation, and more, in an attempt to measure inflation.

The Treasury is not the only government agency that issues debt. There are a host of government agency and quasi-agencies (agencies created by an act of Congress, like FNMA) out there borrowing money. Following are some of them:

The Federal National Mortgage Association (known as "Fannie Mae"). FNMA is a quasi-agency. Its debt is an implied (but not a guaranteed) obligation of the federal government. The agency's stock trades publicly on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol FNM.

Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. ("Freddie Mac"). Like Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac is a quasi-agency/private corporation with stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol FRE.

Student Loan Marketing Association ("Sallie Mae"). Officially known as SLM Corporation, Sallie Mae is the third and last of the three public/private corporations. Its ticker symbol is SLM.

Government National Mortgage Association ("Ginnie Mae") issues bonds that return both principal and interest, just as you pay your monthly mortgage in a single sum to cover both principal and interest. GNMAs are federally guaranteed. This is