Public spending nearly doubles in April

Public spending nearly doubled in April while revenue collections of the government’s two main tax agencies continued to increase by double-digits, the Department of Finance (DOF) said yesterday.

Citing a report from the Bureau of the Treasury, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez said that disbursements jumped by 40 percent year-on-year in April, while the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s (BIR) tax take increased by 13 percent.

Collection of the Bureau of Customs, on the other hand, rose by 43 percent in April from the same month last year, Dominguez said.

Sought for the nominal figures, National Treasurer Rosalia B. de Leon said that government expenditures in April amounted to R225.8 billion from R160.5 billion in the previous year.

Revenue collections of the BIR and Customs last month reached R209.8 billion and R46.9 billion, respectively.

De Leon, however, said that the April figures were just preliminary.

Dominguez also gave the Duterte administration’s January to May 7 this year disbursement figure, which increased by 34.25 percent year-on-year.

For the BIR, the agency’s collection improved 19.5 percent, while the Customs posted a growth rate of 29 percent as of May 7.

From May 2 to 7, the BIR’s collection grew by 342 percent, Customs jumped 43 percent and disbursements increased by 56 percent year-on-year.

Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno earlier said that the outlook on government spending remains sanguine, and is expected to prop up the growth prospects of the Philippine economy.

“We aim for economic expansion at the rate of 7.0 percent to 8.0 percent in the medium-term,” Diokno said.

Earlier, the Treasury reported that government spending in March reached R313.1 billion, higher by 30 percent year-on-year, sustaining the robust growth in disbursements for the first three months of the year.