---
title: "US posts record $145bn December deficit as outlays outpace receipts"
description: "WASHINGTON, Jan 13 (Reuters) - The U.S. government posted a $145-billion budget deficit for December, up 67% or $58-billion from a year earlier due to record outlays that were inflated by calendar shifts in benefit payments and receipts, the Treasury Department said on Tuesday."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "World"
author: "Reuters"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/reuters/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-01-13-us-posts-record-145-billion-december-deficit-as-outlays-outpace-receipts/"
published: "2026-01-13T21:27:42"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 188
---

# US posts record $145bn December deficit as outlays outpace receipts

> WASHINGTON, Jan 13 (Reuters) - The U.S. government posted a $145-billion budget deficit for December, up 67% or $58-billion from a year earlier due to record outlays that were inflated by calendar shifts in benefit payments and receipts, the Treasury Department said on Tuesday.

By Reuters · Published 13 January 2026, 23:27 SAST

## Content

The report showed that revenue growth from President Donald Trump's tariffs may have plateaued, as December net customs receipts totaled $27.9-billion, down from the low $30-billion range in recent months but far above the $6.8-billion recorded in December 2024.

Net customs receipts for the first three months of fiscal 2026, which started October 1, totaled $90-billion vs $20.8-billion in the prior year period.

The Treasury said that after making adjustments to December budget results in both 2024 and 2025, the December deficit would have been $112-billion, a decrease of $14-billion or 11% from the December 2024 budget gap.

Some $32-billion in January 2026 benefit payments were shifted into December because the new year started on a weekend, while $80-billion in December 2024 benefit payments were shifted into November of that year. But the $145-billion reported deficit was a record for the month, a Treasury official said.

The deficit for the first three months of fiscal 2026, which started on October 1, 2025, totaled $602-billion, down $109-billion or 15% from the same period a year earlier amid record receipts and outlays.

(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Andrea Ricci)