U.S. budget deficit for Trump’s first full month in office hits $307 billion

[ResidentialBusiness]

The U.S. budget deficit totaled $307 billion for President Donald Trump’s first full month in office, up 4%, or $11 billion, from a year ago, the Treasury Department said on Wednesday, even as growth in receipts outpaced that of spending.

Receipts totaled $296 billion in February, a record for that month. That figure was up 9%, or $25 billion, compared with a year earlier. But outlays in February totaled $603 billion, also a record for that month. That was up 6%, or $36 billion, from the year-earlier period.

After calendar adjustments for both receipts and outlays, the adjusted deficit would have been $311 billion, a 3% increase over the figure in February 2024, the Treasury Department said.

The deficit for the first five months of fiscal 2025 came to $1.147 trillion, up 38%, or $318 billion, from a year earlier. Fiscal year-to-date receipts rose 2%, or $37 billion, to a record $1.893 trillion, but outlays grew 13%, or $355 billion, to a record $3.039 trillion.

Driving the spending growth in February was higher spending on Treasury’s interest on the public debt, outlays for Child Tax Credit payments and increased Social Security payments due in part to a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment for 2025.

—David Lawder, Reuters

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