Economic rebound: US fiscal deficit sharply lower for 2012
Overall, the deficit remains at a level economists consider unsustainably high over the long run.
WASHINGTON:
The US budget deficit fell sharply in fiscal 2012 to $1.1 trillion; the Treasury said Friday as the Obama administration claimed success in cutting spending and raising fresh revenue. But the deficit, topping $1 trillion for the fourth year in a row, remained excessively high. The fiscal shortfall for the year that ended September 30 was down 16%, or $207 billion, from the 2011 deficit, helped by a $75 billion surplus for September. Overall, the deficit remains at a level economists consider unsustainably high over the long run: it was equivalent to 7% percent of gross domestic product, though that was down from 8.7% in fiscal 2011.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 14th, 2012.
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