The U.S. posted its biggest monthly budget deficit on record last month, after a 20% drop in corporate tax revenue and a major boost in spending so far this year.
The Bottom Line on the Federal Budget- Video Transcription
Patrick Brunson: 00:01
The U.S. posted it's biggest monthly budget deficit on record last month after a 20% drop in corporate tax revenue and a major boost in spending so far this year. The budget gap widened to 234 billion in February compared with a fiscal gap of 215 billion the year before. That gap surpassed the previous monthly record of $231 billion that was set seven years ago. February's shortfall helped push the deficit for the first five months of the government's fiscal year to over $544 billion. That's up almost 40% from the same period last year according to the Treasury Department and their monthly budget report that was released on Friday. The fiscal shortfall is widening following President Trump's one point 5 trillion dollar tax cut package. And that's causing concerns about the national debt load, which has now reached an all time high of $24 trillion just last month. The Federal Reserve chairman, Jerome Powell, reiterated his concerns over the government deficit in a press conference last week saying that the nation's growing debt needs to be addressed.
Patrick Brunson: 01:09
At the same time, there's a shift among many economists on the dangers of a growing deficit with low inflation and cheap borrowing costs suggesting that there's room for additional spending. But the bottom line is this. We've just got to get the spending under control, but neither party is doing anything to address it. Whenever someone brings up debt and the budget as being an issue, both Republicans and Democrats have been turning a blind eye to it. That's a problem. A big one. The media keeps using the phrase ‘kick the can down the road' and we've been doing that for quite some time now. But it's now getting to the point where the can is so big that it will eventually roll back on us putting us into a very deep recession if it's not addressed.
Coy Wells: 01:52
With that said, if you'd like to get more information on how you can position your portfolio, call the number on your screen or click on the link below to get U.S. Money Reserve's latest report, ‘five worst things to do with your money‘. A lot of consumers are having a hard time figuring out where they should be putting their money and this report can help out whenever making those decisions. So please click on the link to get your copy. If you're watching from YouTube, subscribe to our channel so you don't miss a single episode. You're going to want to stay informed as we get closer and closer to this next recession and you're going to want to keep up to date with what's happening. If you have questions, you can post them in the comment section and we will address those as well. As for today, that's all. I'm U.S. Money Reserve's, Patrick Brunson. And as always, thank you for watching Market Insights.
