WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. federal budget deficit totaled 91.85 billion U.S. dollars in December, reported the Treasury Department on Wednesday.

    The deficit was slightly less than the 92 billion dollars that analysts had expected.

    But the red ink of the first three months of fiscal year 2010 beginning from October 2009 is 16.8 percent higher than the same period of the fiscal year 2009 when it hit a record 1.42 trillion dollars.

    The Obama administration expects the 2010 deficit will set a new record at 1.5 trillion dollars.

    Economists worry the fiscal imbalance could push interest rates higher and raise the cost of borrowing for consumers and businesses, a potential drag on the fragile economic recovery.

    The soaring U.S. federal budget has caused widely international concerns. U.S. debt holders worry that the U.S. government has no better way to get out of the debt dilemma but to devalue its currency.

    The Federal Reserve has kept the interest rate at the historical low of zero level since December 2008 to tackle the economic recession. Economists do not expect that the Fed will increase the rates until next year.

Special Report:  Global Financial Crisis