The Marcos administration posted a fiscal surplus of P6.3 billion in October, driven by increased revenue collection and slower growth in government spending, the Bureau of the Treasury reported.
In a statement, the Treasury said the rare budget surplus marked a turnaround from the P34.4 billion deficit recorded in October of the previous year, attributed to strong revenue growth, particularly in tax collection.
"The higher VAT [value-added tax] collection for the month accounts for the third quarter collection," the Treasury said.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) reported an 18.62 percent year-on-year increase in collections to P325.5 billion. This growth was fueled by higher collections on VAT, personal income tax (PIT), documentary stamp tax (DST), corporate income tax (CIT), excise tax on tobacco products, and percentage taxes, according to the Treasury.
The Bureau of Customs (BOC) also contributed to the positive revenue performance with an 11.5 percent year-on-year increase, collecting P86.9 billion in October. The BOC attributed this growth to "rigorous verification of imported goods values and classifications, along with the stringent implementation of the fuel marking initiative."
On the expenditure side, the government disbursed P466.8 billion in October, an 11 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
This was primarily due to higher personnel services expenses, including the first tranche of salary adjustments for qualified civilian government employees and the release of performance-based bonuses for the Department of Education, the Treasury said. Increased spending on infrastructure projects, social protection programs, and health initiatives also contributed to the rise in expenditures.
Despite the year-on-year increase, government spending remained below the growth rate of revenue collection, resulting in the fiscal surplus. This positive development has led to a narrowing of the year-to-date fiscal deficit to P963.9 billion, which is only 64.94 percent of the P1.48 trillion full-year program.
The Bureau of the Treasury also noted the improvement in key fiscal indicators. The revenue effort for the first three quarters of the year reached 17.5 percent of gross domestic product, exceeding the 16.1 percent target for 2024. Similarly, the tax effort rose to 14.91 percent, surpassing the 14.42 percent full-year target.
The fiscal deficit-to-GDP ratio stood at 5.14 percent for the first three quarters of 2024, lower than the 5.70 percent level during the same period last year and well below the 5.6 percent target for 2024.