Budget deficit narrows on lower spending
The national government’s budget deficit narrowed in February this year owing to lower public spending.
Data from the Bureau of the Treasury showed that the government incurred a P105.8 billion fiscal gap during the month, down by nine percent from P116 billion in February 2021.
The slimmer financing gap was recorded despite the decline in revenue haul. Government expenditures also fell year-on-year.
According to the Treasury bureau said Thursday, March 31, total disbursements amounted to P318.2 billion, down five percent compared with the P335.5 billion last year.
Both interest payments and other expenditures, including infrastructure, slowed in February by nine percent and five percent, respectively.
Total revenues, on the other hand, declined by three percent to P212.4 billion from P219.6 billion last year.
Based on the Treasury report, tax revenues dropped 2.6 percent from P203.3 billion to P197.8 billion.
Of that amount, the Bureau of the Internal Revenue contributed P136.6 billion, 11 percent lower against the P154.1 billion collection a year ago. However, the Bureau of Customs saw its revenue jumping 26 percent to P59.4 billion from P47.2 billion.
Tax collections of other offices also weakened by 9.5 percent from P2 billion to P1.8 billion.
Netting out the interest payments, the government recorded a primary deficit of P77.6 billion in February, lower by 8.5 percent than the P84.8 billion record in the same month in 2021.
In the first two-month of the year, the Duterte administration registered a P129.2 billion budget deficit, slightly behind the P130 billion gap in the same period last year.
At end-February, revenues improved two percent to P490.4 billion from P480.3 billion. Of that total, tax income reached P453.1 billion, while non-tax revenues hit P37.4 billion.
Meanwhile, total expenditures from January to February inched up by 1.5 percent to P619.7 billion from P610 billion.
The government registered a primary deficit of P35.4 billion in the first two-months, lower by 32 percent compared with P51.8 billion in the previous year.
In 2022, the Development Budget Coordination Committee, an inter-agency body that sets the country's macroeconomic targets, has programmed a P1.65 trillion budget deficit, equivalent to 7.7 percent of the country’s economy.