OTTAWA, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Canada recorded a sharply higher C$23.61 billion ($17.51 billion) budget deficit for the first nine months of the 2023/24 fiscal year as government expenditures grew faster than revenues, the finance ministry said on Friday.
By comparison, the deficit in the same period a year earlier had been just C$5.54 billion, it said in a statement.
Program expenses rose 6.6% on increases across all major categories of spending. Public debt charges jumped by 35.6% largely because of higher interest rates, the ministry said.
Year-to-date revenues grew by 2.6%, largely reflecting higher personal income tax revenue and revenue from other taxes and duties.
On a monthly basis, Canada posted a deficit of C$4.47 billion in December, compared to a C$1.98 billion deficit in December 2022.
($1 = 1.3484 Canadian dollars)