Tuesday, August 15, 2023, at the U.S. Treasury Building in Washington, DC, USA.
Nathan Howard | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The U.S. budget deficit ballooned in November and is moving at a much faster pace in fiscal 2025 than a year ago, when the shortfall already exceeded $1.8 trillion, the Treasury Department reported Wednesday.
The total deficit for the month was $366.8 billion, 17% higher than in November 2023 and more than 64% higher than a year ago on an unadjusted basis for the first two months of the fiscal year.
This increase came despite total receipts of $301.8 billion, about $27 billion more than last November. Total spending was $668.5 billion, an increase of nearly $80 billion from the same period last year.
The increase in the deficit brought the national debt to $36.1 trillion as the month came to a close.
On an adjusted basis, the deficit was $286 billion, bringing the year-to-date total to $544 billion, an increase of 19%.
The Fed has cut interest rates twice since September, totaling three-quarters of a percentage point, but interest spending continues to be a major contributor to the budget deficit. Net interest expense totaled $79 billion for the month and $160 billion for the fiscal year, more than all other spending except Social Security, Medicare, defense, and health care.
The Treasury Department expects to pay $1.2 trillion in total interest on the debt this year.
