RPT-US govt posts $42.63 bln budget deficit in Jan

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WASHINGTON, Feb 17 (Reuters) - The United States posted a smaller-than-expected $42.63 billion budget deficit in January, Treasury Department data showed on Wednesday, due in part to a drop in spending caused by a shift in the calendar.

The January deficit fell short of analysts' consensus forecast in a Reuters poll for a $47 billion budget gap and compares with a $91.41 billion deficit posted in December and a $63.46 billion gap for the same period a year ago.

In January, outlays fell to $247.88 billion from $310.33 billion in December and compared with $289.55 billion in January 2009, the department said.

Receipts totaled $205.24 billion from $218.92 billion in December and were the lowest for a January since 2005, the department said. Receipts in January 2009 stood at $226.09 billion.

The department said that because the Jan. 1 holiday fell on a Friday this year, some spending had been shifted from January into December 2009. (Reporting by Nancy Waitz; Editing by Andrea Ricci)