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The US budget deficit hits a record high for the month of March as expenditures swell due to pandemic payments
The US Treasury said Monday that the United States recorded a budget deficit of $ 660 billion in March, a record high for that month, with direct payments to Americans from President Joe Biden's stimulus package.
The budget deficit for the first six months of fiscal year 2021, which began last October, reached a record high of $ 1.706 trillion, compared to a deficit of $ 743 billion in the same period of fiscal year 2020
Most of the first six months of fiscal year 2020 did not include emergency spending due to the pandemic to compensate for coronavirus-related shutdowns that began in March 2020.
The budget deficit in March, which compares to a deficit of $ 119 billion a year ago, was the result of revenues of $ 268 billion and expenditures of $ 927 billion, both of which were record highs for that month.
The US Treasury said that the first six months of fiscal year 2021 recorded a record level of expenditures amounting to $ 3.410 trillion, while revenues reached $ 1.704 trillion.
A Treasury official said that the total direct payments in the six-month period amounted to $ 487 billion, including those paid under a year-end stimulus package approved under the president's administration.
