(repeating item from yesterday to show that consensus forecast was for a November budget deficit of 54 bln usd and to reverse transposition of figures in the first paragraph) WASHINGTON (AFX) - The US government posted a budget deficit of 53.4 bln usd in November, wider than the deficit of 23.7 bln in the same month the previous year. The deficit was narrower than expected. The consensus forecast of Wall Street economists was for a 54 bln usd budget deficit in November. The Treasury said receipts totalled 121.23 bln usd in November, while outlays totalled 175.50 bln. The government's interest payments on publicly-held debt totaled 21.13 bln usd in November, and 38.75 bln so far this fiscal year. Customs duties fell 349 mln usd last month, to 1.57 bln, indicating that imports fell for the month. Many economists use the customs data to get an early indication of the month's import level, which will not be released by the Commerce Department until mid-December.