U.S. Budget Deficit Narrows Through Two-Thirds of Fiscal Year; Higher Tax Take, Smaller Federal Outlays Help Narrow Gap
WASHINGTON--The U.S. budget deficit has narrowed through two-thirds of the year, aided by both increased tax receipts and smaller federal outlays.</br></br>The U.S. government's deficit from October through May totaled $436.38 billion, down 30% from the same period a year earlier, the Treasury Department said Wednesday. The 2014 federal fiscal year started Oct. 1, 2013.</br></br>The year-to-date deficit is the smallest since the same period in 2008. Deficits reached a recent peak in 2009 at the end of the recession, and have narrowed since.</br></br>Spending outpaced revenue in May, but the month's budget deficit of $129.97 billion narrowed 6% compared with the prior year's May shortfall.</br></br>Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a May deficit of $130.5 billion.