LUMAKI ang budget deficit ng national government ng 60 percent sa unang walong buwan ng taon, ayon sa Bureau of Treasury (BTr).
Sa datos ng BTr, ang deficit ay umabot sa P282 billion, mas mataas sa P176.2 billion na naitala sa kaparehong panahon noong nakaraang taon.
Ang deficit hanggang noong end-August ay kumakatawan sa 54 percent ng P523.7-billion total deficit program para sa taon.
Noong Agosto lamang, ang deficit ay nasa P2.6 billion, kumpara sa P28.8-billion surplus noong nakaraang taon.
“The higher budget deficit can crowd out funds in the private sector and exert upward pressure on interest rates,” wika ni Cid Terosa, dean ng University of Asia and the Pacific School of Economics.
“It is not necessarily bad if it is in the context of spending for long-term growth and economic development. Infrastructure spending and capital formation are examples of spending for long-term growth,” sabi pa niya.
Ang total expenditures sa January-August period ay tumaas ng 23 percent sa P2.191 trillion mula sa P1.777 trillion year-on-year.
Ang government revenue ay naitala naman sa P1.909 trillion, mas mataas ng 19 percent sa P1.601 trillion.
“Collections from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) accounted for the lion’s share of P1.313 trillion of the total government receipts. It grew by 13 percent from P1.157 trillion last year.
“Bureau of Customs (BOC) collections contributed P383.5 billion, up 35 percent from P283.6 billion on the back of higher peso-dollar exchange rate, increased oil prices, proper valuation, strong enforcement, and revenue-enhancing measures,” sabi pa ng BTr.
Samantala, ang non-tax collections ay tumaas ng 23 percent sa P197 billion mula sa P145.6 billion.
