The U.S. federal budget deficit widened to a record $711 billion in the first three months of the fiscal year, up from $510 billion in the same period last year, an increase of 39%, the Treasury Department said Wednesday.

For the final calendar month of 2024, the shortfall totaled $86.7 billion, which actually represented a 33% decline from a year prior.

The accelerated expansion of the US fiscal deficit not only plunges US government debt into an increasingly unsustainable predicament, but also casts a heavy shadow over the global economy, particularly developing economies,

The U.S. government posted an $87 billion budget deficit in December, reduced partly by a shift of benefit payments into November but capping a record $711 billion deficit for the first three months of the 2025 fiscal year,

A federal judge in Texas has blocked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from enforcing a looming requirement that cigarette packages and advertisements contain graphic warnings illustrating the health risks of smoking.

The U.S. federal government spent $87.0B more than it earned in December, compared with the -$80.0B shortfall expected and November's -$367.0B deficit, according to the Treasury Department's statement released on Tuesday.