US Budget Deficit Hits Record $2.1 Trillion in First Eight Months of FY 2021
The federal budget deficit climbed to a record $2.1 trillion in the first eight months of fiscal year 2021, the Treasury Department reported Thursday in its monthly statement.
Federal revenues rose to a record high of $2.6 trillion from October 2020 to May 2021, an increase of 29% from the same period a year earlier, driven largely by individual and corporate income tax receipts as the economy recovered, Treasury said. Outlays also rose to a record of $4.7 trillion, up 20%, driven by big increases in spending related to the Covid-19 pandemic, including direct relief payments, unemployment benefits and support for small businesses.
“The government’s spending surge has propelled a rapid recovery from the pandemic-induced economic slump while also helping send the federal debt—as a proportion of the economy—soaring to levels not seen since the end of World War II,” The Wall Street Journal’s John McCormick wrote.
