US FEDERAL BUDGET DEFICIT TO REACH 1.9 TRILLION DOLLARS IN 2024-The budget deficit for 2024 has been revised upwards by 27%
The U.S. federal government’s budget deficit for the fiscal year 2024 is projected to reach 1.9 trillion U.S. dollars this year, according to a report released by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) on Tuesday.
The report said that the federal government’s budget deficit for fiscal year 2024 has been revised upward by 27 percent compared with the February forecast. Additionally, cumulative deficits from 2025 to 2034 are also forecast to increase significantly.
Factors driving the upward revision in forecasts include increased foreign military assistance, student loan relief, and higher deposit insurance expenditures.
In addition, U.S. debt is expected to balloon from 2024 to 2034. The portion of debt held by the public as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) is projected to rise from 99 percent this year to 122 percent by 2034, surpassing the previous peak of 106 percent.
Meanwhile, the CBO predicted that U.S. economic growth will slow from 3.1 percent in 2023 to 2.0 percent in 2024. The inflation rate is expected to decrease from 2.7 percent in 2024 to levels roughly consistent with the Federal Reserve’s long-term target of 2 percent by 2026 and stabilize thereafter.
On the same day, the Peterson Foundation of the United States stated in a release that the report from the U.S. CBO once again demonstrates that the “U.S. is on an unsustainable and dangerous fiscal path”.
If not addressed, the structural mismatch between federal spending and revenue, along with rising interest rates and federal borrowing costs, will pose challenges to the federal budget, the U.S. economy, and the nation’s future.
Michael Peterson, CEO of the Peterson Foundation, said that the report from the U.S. CBO indicates that the outlook for the severe challenges facing U.S. national debt is worsening.
