MNI BRIEF: US CBO Projects December Budget Deficit Of $143B

The nonpartisan U.S. Congressional Budget Office on Monday projected the December federal budget deficit will be USD143 billion, up USD129 billion compared to the deficit in December 2019.

The CBO also estimated that the federal deficit in the first quarter of fiscal year 2021 in October, November, and December to be USD572 billion, USD215 billion more than the deficit recorded during the same quarter last year.

Revenues stayed roughly unchanged over the three month period compared to year-ago levels at roughly USD800 billion, while outlays were up to USD1.4 trillion, more than 18% compared to the same period in fiscal year 2020. Almost 40% of the increase in outlays was due to unemployment compensation, which increased more than elevenfold, from USD7 billion to USD80 billion.