as a percentage of the gdp, within the context of the national economy as a whole, the highest deficit was run during fiscal year 1946 at nearly 30% of gdp, but that rebounded to a surplus by 1947. by contrast, deficits during the 1980s reached 5–6% of gdp and the deficit for 2005 was 2.6% of gdp, close to the post-world war ii average. in 2009, the deficit was 9.8% of gdp, the highest since world war ii.