Trump’s First Annual Budget Deficit Climbs to a Six-Year High

The U.S. budget deficit grew to $779 billion in Donald Trump’s first full fiscal year as president, the highest since 2012 amid tax cuts and spending increases.

The budget gap for the 12 months through September was 17 percent wider than the same 12-month period a year earlier, as spending rose 3.2 percent and revenue gained just 0.4 percent, according to a Treasury Department report released Oct. 15. The government’s fiscal year runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30.

The budget deficit has continued to climb in recent years, raising concerns the country’s debt load of more than $21.5 trillion ...