The U.S. Treasury releases a monthly account of the surplus or deficit of the federal government. Changes in the budget balance of the annual fiscal year (which begins in October) are followed as an indicator of budgetary trends and the thrust of fiscal policy. Why Investors Care
| Released on 8/10/07 For Jul 2007 | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
Highlights
July's Treasury deficit of $36.3 billion was higher than last July's deficit of $33.2 billion but year-to-date, the Treasury's deficit is still much lower, at $157.3 billion vs. $239.6 billion. Tax receipts so far this fiscal year, which started in October, are far higher than last year, up 10.7 percent for corporate taxes and 11.3 percent for the much larger category of individual taxes. Total receipts, which also include social insurance payments and other taxes, are up 7.4 percent. Total outlays, the other side of the ledger, are up only 2.9 percent. Progress in the fiscal deficit is important, but today's data are overshadowed by uncertainty in the banking system.
The U.S. Treasury monthly budget report showed a surplus of $27.5 billion in June, pushing down the fiscal-year-to-date deficit to $121.0 - well down from $206.5 billion at this time last year. Looking ahead, the month of July typically shows a moderate deficit for the month. Over the past 10 years, the average deficit for the month of July has been $30.7 billion.
Treasury Statement Consensus Forecast for July 07: -$34.0 billion
Range: -$60.0 billion to -$26.5 billion.
![[Chart]](chart.gif)
|
The federal budget balance is not seasonally adjusted. Consequently, it is useful to compare the current month's budget deficit or surplus to the same month for a couple of years. Some months are known to have large surpluses because quarterly estimated tax payments are received by the government. |
| 2007 Release Schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
powered by
![[Econoday]](../../../../../../../../../images/logo.gif){kind=logo}