Debt-to-GDP ratio for 9 mths

public spending contributed 0.87 percentage points, or 12.4 percent, of the 7.0 percent GDP growth.

A large bulk of the expenditure growth went to public works construction, which rose 30.5 percent in real terms, he said.

The DOF said the proportion of the government’s interest payments to its total expenditures likewise dropped to 13.4 percent during the period from 13.9 percent in 2015.

With heightened public spending, Beltran said government expenditure exceeded nomi the year.

Expenditures increased by 14.1 percent during the period, surpassing the 7 percent GDP growth at end- September. Also, expenditure effort rose to 17.96 percent of GDP from 17.09 percent last year, the agency said.

Meanwhile, it said tax effort of the national government remained at 14.21 percent at end-September, while revenue effort slid to 15.9 percent from 16.83 percent last year.

“Excluding oil and rice taxes, revenue effort would have declined by only 0.16 percentage point,” Beltran said.

“Tax effort stood still at 14.2 percent as oil revenues continued their downward plunge. However, netting out the effects of the oil price decline and rice, tax effort rose by 0.11 percentage point,” he added.

- ternal Revenue’s tax effort improved to 11.31 percent from 11.27 percent, while the Bureau from 2.81 percent, the DOF said.