The U.S. government’s budget deficit rose 10 percent year-on-year to $244 billion in July, the Treasury Department stated. July’s deficit rose $23 billion from July 2023’s $221 billion deficit.
The department attributed the increase to the lower-than-usual benefits outlays last July, for Medicare in particular, because those payments were made in June 2023 due to the beginning of last July falling on a weekend.
July receipts rose 20 percent year-on-year to $330 billion. However, adjusting for deferred tax receipts, the increase would have been at 12 percent. Meanwhile, outlays rose 16 percent to $574 billion due mainly to a $72 billion increase in Medicare outlays.
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During the first 10 months of fiscal year 2024, the U.S. budget deficit declined 6 percent to $1.517 trillion from $1.614 trillion during the same period of fiscal year 2023.
The Treasury Department also revealed that receipts rose 11 percent annually to $4.085 trillion, while outlays increased by 6 percent to $5.602 trillion, during the same period.
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