United States Posts Smallest Deficit Since 2007

The Treasury Department announced on Thursday that the United States posted a $439 billion deficit for FY2015, down 9% from the prior year. This is the smallest deficit that the country has posted since 2007.

The $439 billion deficit was 2.5% of the Gross Domestic Product, which is below the average of the last 40 years. For a country that may never post a surplus again, this is as close to a "win" as you are going to get.

Revenues for the 2015 fiscal year rose 8% to $3.249 trillion, while outlays rose 5% to $3.688 trillion.

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Let's look at the deficit numbers since 2007:

2007 - $161 billion
2008 - $459 billion
2009 - $1.413 trillion
2010 - $1.294 trillion
2011 - $1.299 trillion
2012 - $1.1 trillion
2013 - $680 billion
2014 - $492 billion

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While the deficits have been shrinking in recent years, the Congressional Budget Office has repeatedly stated that they will start to ramp up again shortly unless some major changes are made to the budget going forward.

Speaking of the budget, the Republicans and Democrats are likely going to have another battle shortly in regards to the nation's debt ceiling. Earlier today, the Treasury Department revealed that the United States will reach its debt ceiling by November 3rd, which means that a deal between the Republicans and Democrats to increase the limit must be struck by then.

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The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the country will post deficits of roughly $415 billion in both 2016 and 2017, followed by deficits of $454 billion in 2018, $596 billion in 2019 and $687 billion in 2020. By 2025, the CBO estimates, the country will be posting deficits in excess of $1 trillion once again, unless significant changes are made to future budgets.

Source: CBO.gov

Filed under: General Knowledge