The US Treasury Department lowers its quarterly borrowing estimate as cash balance exceeds expectations.

The U.S. Treasury Department has revised down its estimate for federal borrowing in the current quarter, citing higher-than-expected cash balances at the beginning of the quarter. The Treasury Department said in a statement on Monday that it expects net borrowing of $569 billion in October to December, lower than the $590 billion estimated in July. This estimate assumes a cash balance of $850 billion at the end of December, consistent with the levels in the previous few quarters. The Treasury Department expects borrowing of $578 billion in January to March next year, with the goal of maintaining a cash balance of $850 billion by the end of March. In the previous quarter, the Treasury Department significantly increased the issuance of Treasury securities after Congress passed legislation to raise the debt limit, in order to rebuild its cash reserves. However, this balance has now exceeded the previous target of $850 billion and has reached $1 trillion for the first time since April 2021.