UK Budget Deficit Overshoots Forecast in New Blow to Reeves (3)

UK government borrowing came in significantly higher than forecast in August, delivering a blow to Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves ahead of a challenging budget in the autumn and sending gilts and the pound lower.

The deficit stood at £18 billion ($24.4 billion), the Office for National Statistics said Friday, well above the £12.5 billion the Office for Budget Responsibility had forecast and the highest borrowing for the month in five years.

It left the deficit after five months of the fiscal year at £83.8 billion — £11.4 billion above the OBR forecast and the second-highest since records began ...