MNI BRIEF:US Budget Deficit is Second Largest Ever at USD2.77T

The U.S. budget deficit totaled USD2.77 trillion for the 2021 fiscal year, the second highest on record following the all-time high of USD3.13 trillion reached in 2020.

The Biden administration said Friday the deficit for the budget year that ended Sept. 30 narrowed as a recovering economy boosted revenues, helping to offset extra pandemic relief spending. While expenditures were up 4% or by USD266 billion from the prior year, revenue gained 18% or USD626 billion, according to Treasury data released Friday.

The September monthly budget deficit came in at USD62 billion, down from USD125 billion in the year-ago month. Before the pandemic deficits of the past two years, the biggest shortfall the U.S. federal government recorded was USD1.4 trillion in 2009 during the Obama administration following the 2008 financial crisis.