April surplus

“Bulk of the increase was due to higher remittance of dividends on shares of stocks held by the government and higher earnings from BTr managed funds,” it said.

- lion, 39 percent higher from last year.

The bulk of government expenditures, meanwhile, were for items percent to P238.1 billion.

Interest payments totaling P23.2

billion, up 72 percent year on year, accounted for the rest of state spending for the month.

“Domestic interest payments reached P16.1 billion as servicing of obligations during the holidays in March were made in April instead,” the Treasury sayd.

“External payments also increased by 33 percent or P1.7 billion from P5.3 billion paid last year given the weaker peso and timing of recording,” it added.

Netting out interest payments, the government recorded a P69.5-billion primary surplus in April, higher than the P66.3 billion posted last year.

Year to date, revenues were up 21 percent to P927.4 billion from

P768.3 billion.

“Other” expenditures rose 33 percent to P912.9 billion while interest payments recorded 17 percent growth to P130.4 billion.

The primary balance as of end-April than last year’s P81.2-billion shortfall.

“We’re having a good start in the first trimester of this year but are ever vigilant of developments in the oil and capital markets abroad that may negatively affect the Philippine economy,” Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez 3rd said.