11-month budget deficit up 4%

The government incurred a fiscal deficit of P243.5 billion from January to November, four percent wider than the previous year’s P235.2 billion, the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) reported yesterday.

This is despite the narrower budget deficit recorded in November, which amounted to only P8.6 billion, down sharply from the P19.1 billion recorded a year ago.

A deficit occurs when government expenditures exceed the revenue generated.

According to data from the Treasury, total disbursements during the 11-month period reached P2.49 trillion while year-todate collections stood at only P2.25 trillion.

On a year-to-date basis, government expenditures amounted to P2.49 trillion, 10 percent higher than the 2016 level of P2.27 trillion.

For November, alone, disbursements grew 10 percent to P252.1 billion from P228.4 billion in the same month last year.

Meanwhile, the year-todate revenue collection of P2.25 trillion was up 11 percent from P2.03 trillion in the same period in 2016. For November, revenue climbed 16 percent to P243.5 billion from P209.2 billion.

Broken down, the Bureau of Internal Revenue collected P1.62 trillion in the first eleven months, 12 percent higher than last year’s P1.45 trillion. Including tax refunds, the agency’s collection during the period amounted to P1.63 trillion, the BTr said.

The Bureau of Customs’ collection as of end-November grew 14 percent to P413.1 billion. The amount is expected to reach P415.7 billion after the tax refund for January to November is taken into account.

Non-tax revenue during the period rose two percent to P109.5 billion, offsetting the BTr’s income of P86.5 billion, which was down by nine percent as of end-November, but already above the bureau’s target of P58.6 billion.

Netting out interest payments, the BTr said the national government registered a primary surplus of P46.5 billion, slightly behind the P50.2 billion recorded a year ago.

Earlier, Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said the government may fall behind its P482.1 billion deficit target for 2017.

According to Diokno, the slow progress in the country’s budget gap could either be due to slower than expected spending, or higher than programmed revenue, or both.