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OTTAWA — The federal government posted a razor-thin $1-billion deficit in 2015-16, a period in which both the Liberals and Conservatives had turns managing the public books.

The shortfall, released in a package of year-end numbers Friday, was a bit smaller than the $5.4-billion deficit projected by the Trudeau government in its March budget.

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It would have been bigger if not for the Conservatives’ sale of GM shares, and a surge in personal tax revenue linked to the Liberals’ tax hike on the rich.

But the final deficit figure is sure to rankle the Tories, who have long argued they left government finances on track for a surplus before they were defeated in last fall’s election.

The Conservative government ran a $1.9-billion surplus in 2014-15 and had projected a $1.4-billion surplus for 2015-16.