UK budget deficit reaches $286b in seven months

U.K. Chancellor Rishi Sunak faces tough choices as he prepares for a major announcement on spending next week.

LONDON: U.K. government borrowing climbed to a record 214.9 billion pounds ($286 billion) in the first seven months of the fiscal year, underscoring the tough choices facing Chancellor Rishi Sunak as he prepares for a major announcement on spending next week.

Office for National Statistics figures Friday showed the deficit in October alone totaled 22.3 billion pounds, leaving Britain on course for a shortfall approaching 400 billion pounds for 2020-21 as a whole and debt above 100% of GDP for the first time since the early 1960s. There was better news on retail sales, which rose for a sixth straight month.