WASHINGTON, July 13 (Xinhua) -- The budget plan released by the Trump administration in May will reduce the fiscal deficit of the United States, but will not balance within 10 years as the White House has claimed, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said on Thursday.
According to the nonpartisan organization's forecast, the deficit would fall from 693 billion U.S. dollars projected for 2017 to 593 billion dollars in 2018 under the White House's proposals.
After 2018, the deficit would generally rise and reach 720 billion dollars in 2027, the CBO said. However, the White House's budget office said the administration's proposal would result in a 16-billion-dollar surplus in 2027.
The CBO said the larger deficit projections arise from different economic forecasts. The Trump administration has projected higher revenue collections, stemming mainly from a projection of faster economic growth, said the CBO.
Although Trump's budget plan would not balance within 10 years, it would still reduce the country's debt.
According to the CBO's estimates, by the end of 2027, debt held by the public would total 80 percent of the GDP, 11 percentage points lower than the debt-to-GDP ratio in the CBO's baseline projection.
The reduction in deficit and debt under the administration's budget would be achieved by decreasing both mandatory and discretionary spending significantly compared with projections under the current law, said the CBO.
