US July Tariff Revenue Jump Fails to Halt Wider Budget Gap (1)

US tariff revenue reached a fresh monthly record in July, though the increase wasn’t enough to prevent a widening in the monthly budget deficit — pointing to the federal government’s continuing fiscal challenges.

Customs duties climbed to $28 billion last month, marking a 273% surge over July last year, a Treasury Department release showed on Tuesday. At the same time, the monthly budget deficit came in at $291 billion, or 10% more than the same month a year before, after accounting for calendar differences.

As the fiscal year approaches its September end, the US is heading for another outsize ...