U.S. customs tariff revenue surged to $23 billion in May, marking a 270% year-over-year increase driven by policies implemented during the Trump administration. This contributed to a 15% overall rise in government tax receipts, which reached $371.2 billion for the month.
Despite the tariff revenue spike, it remains a minor component of federal expenditures at just 3%. Concurrently, debt servicing costs showed improvement due to reduced interest payments on inflation-indexed securities and declining short-term Treasury bill rates.
May’s interest payments totaled $92.2 billion, pushing the annual interest burden toward $1.2 trillion. This escalating cost has intensified concerns about U.S. public debt sustainability amid record government spending levels.