According to the latest report from the US Treasury Department, in June 2025 alone, customs revenue skyrocketed, helping Washington record a $27 billion budget surplus, a big surprise compared to a $71 billion deficit in the same period last year.
In the first 9 months of the 2025 fiscal year (as of the end of June), total revenue from customs duties reached 113.3 billion USD, or 108 billion USD after tax refunds, nearly double the same period last year.
In June alone, import tax revenue increased sharply to 27.2 billion USD before tax refunds, or 26.6 billion USD after tax refunds - unprecedented records.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote on social network X: "The US is benefiting from President Trump's tariff policies and there is no inflation!" He affirmed that this is evidence that the "economic sovereignty reconstruction" strategy is effective.
President Donald Trump also confidently said on July 8: "Money will flow into the Treasury after August 1," as the US begins to impose higher counterpart tariffs on trading partners.
With a strong increase, tariffs have now become the 4th largest source of revenue for the US government, as follows: Personal income tax deducted at source (2,683 billion USD), non-deductible personal income tax (965 billion USD), corporate income tax (392 billion USD).
From about 2% of total federal budget revenue, tariffs have now risen to more than 5%, in just a few months. Experts warn that the government can "addict" this source of income, although the long-term risk is real if businesses and consumers seek to avoid or reduce consumption of imported goods.
Despite a surplus in June, the total budget deficit since the beginning of the fiscal year has increased by 5% compared to last year, to 1,337 billion USD. The reason is that expenses for health insurance, social security, national defense, domestic security and especially national interest continue to increase.
In the first 9 months of the year, public interest payments have reached 921 billion USD, ranking No. 1 in all single spending of the US government.
Total budget revenue during this period reached 4,008 billion USD, up 7% thanks to job and salary growth, while total spending reached 5,346 billion USD, up 6%.
Finance Minister Bessent said that if the pace of June is maintained, the US can collect 276.5 billion USD in customs duties in the second half of the year. However, to achieve the target of 300 billion USD in 2025, the government will need to increase taxes or expand tax subjects.
President Trump has stepped up his tariff campaign this week: imposing a 50% tax on Brazilian and co- studying imports, and a 35% on Canadian goods, is preparing specialized tax packages targeting the semiconductor and pharmaceutical industries.
Economist Ernie Tedeschi from Yale University warned: The risk of our dependence on tax revenue is real. When businesses and people adjust their behavior, this source of revenue can decrease sharply".
