President Donald Trump's casual comment this week that suggested Puerto Rico's debt could disappear caused prices on bonds tied to the island to plummet.
As The Wall Street Journal reported, bond prices in the U.S. territory were already trading at record-low prices because of the island's financial crisis and the devastation caused by Hurricane Maria.
Trump visited the storm-stricken island Tuesday and said during an interview, "You can say goodbye to that," referring to the debt.
According to the Journal, bonds that fully mature in 2035 were trading at 44 cents on the dollar late Tuesday. On Wednesday, that had dropped to 30 cents on the dollar.
The day before Hurricane Maria made landfall on the island last month, the bond price was 56 cents on the dollar.
Trump's comments led to White House budget director Mick Mulvaney stepping behind the mic Wednesday to say the executive branch has no plans to insert itself in any debt restructuring efforts regarding Puerto Rico.
"I think what you heard the president say is that Puerto Rico is going to have to figure out a way to solve its debt problem," Bloomberg reported Mulvaney as saying.
According to CNBC, Puerto Rico is buried in $72 billion worth of debt.