The US federal budget deficit surged in August with one month to go until the end of the fiscal year as higher interest costs continued to weigh on the overall balance.

The U.S. budget deficit reached $1.897 trillion for the first 11 months of the 2024 fiscal year, the Treasury Department said on Thursday, as annual interest costs on the public debt topped $1 trillion for the first time.

The federal government borrowed $1.9 trillion in the first eleven months of fiscal year 2024, including $380 billion in August, a startling amount as federal watchdogs