US fiscal deficit reaches $1.97 trillion in first 11 months of FY2026, already exceeding full-year FY2025 deficit amid unsustainable spending trajectory.
Macro & Markets ·
The US fiscal deficit reached $1.97 trillion through the first 11 months of fiscal 2026, already exceeding the full-year FY2025 deficit of $1.78 trillion. August's monthly deficit fell to $167 billion, a $178 billion decline year-over-year, but this was largely attributable to a calendar shift that deferred Medicare and Social Security payments into July; adjusting for these timing effects, the monthly deficit actually rose $7 billion year-over-year to $248 billion. The cumulative deficit now ranks as the fourth-largest at this point in a fiscal year historically.