U.S. January Budget Deficit Widens To $18 Billion

The federal government ran a budget deficit of $18 billion in January, the Treasury Department reported Wednesday. The monthly deficit compares to the $10 billion shortfall the government ran in January 2014, and brings the deficit for the fiscal year to date to $194 billion. The government spent $324 billion in January, an increase of 6% from the same month a year ago. Total receipts were $307 billion, up 4% from January 2014. The government would have run a surplus of $11 billion in January had it not been for shifts in the timing of certain payments and receipts, the Treasury said.