The U.S. government ran up another half a trillion dollars in red ink in the first quarter of its fiscal year, the Treasury Department reported Thursday.
For the October through December 2023 period, the budget deficit totaled just shy of $510 billion, following a shortfall of $129.4 billion in just December alone. The jump in the deficit pushed total government debt past $34 trillion for the first time.
Compared to last year, which saw a final deficit of $1.7 trillion, 2024 is running even hotter.
In the first quarter of fiscal 2023, for example, the difference between spending and receipts totaled $421.4 billion. On an unadjusted basis that’s an increase of $89 billion between fiscal 2024 and last year; adjusted for calendar factors, the Treasury Department said the change between the two years is actually $97 billion. December’s shortfall was higher by more than $34 billion compared to the previous year.
Approved ~ FS
Scut FarKus
Article URL : https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/11/us-deficit-tops-half-a-trillion-dollars-in-the-first-quarter-of-fiscal-year.html