US February budget deficit flat at $308 billion as tariff revenues not yet hit by court ruling

ReutersWed, March 11, 2026 at 6:07 PM UTC

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FILE PHOTO: The U.S. Capitol dome is seen reflected in a puddle in Washington, U.S., December 17, 2020. REUTERS/Erin Scott/File Photo

WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - The U.S. budget deficit for February was nearly flat with a year earlier at $308 billion ‌as growth in receipts and outlays were largely even, ‌with receipts from President Donald Trump's tariffs not yet reflecting the U.S. Supreme ​Court's ruling against many of his duties last month.

February receipts came in at $313 billion, up $17 billion or 6% from a year earlier, while outlays for the month totaled $621 billion, up $17 billion or 3% ‌from February 2025. The ⁠year-on-year monthly comparison reflected the first full month in the Trump administration.

Receipt growth was driven in part ⁠by a $15 billion increase in individual withheld income taxes in February, partly reflecting the payment of 2025 year-end bonuses, a Treasury official said. ​This ​was offset by a $7 billion increase ​in corporate tax refunds ‌and a $6 billion increase in individual tax refunds driven by last year's Republican-passed tax cut legislation.

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The report showed a slight cooling of net customs duties in February to $26.6 billion, compared with $27.7 billion in January and over $30 billion in the final months of last ‌year.

But the Treasury official said the budget ​data largely does not reflect tariff ​reductions due to the ​Supreme Court's decision to strike down duties under ‌the International Emergency Economic Powers Act ​as illegal, as ​tariffs are generally paid a month in arrears. The Customs and Border Protection agency stopped assessing those tariffs on imports ​starting on February ‌24.

The official said it was unclear how any IEEPA ​tariff refunds would show up in the data.

(Reporting by David ​Lawder; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

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