WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The U.S. ended fiscal 2016 with a $587 billion deficit, a rise of $148 billion. Outlays rose by 5% while receipts rose less than 1%, the Treasury Department said. As a percentage of GDP, the deficit rose to 3.2%, up from 2.5%. Higher spending for Social Security; Medicare and Medicaid; interest on the public debt; and less receipts from spectrum sales and dividends from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac impacted the outlays.
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