Philippine budget deficit widened in October

The Philippine national government’s budget deficit in October widened by 54 percent to P99.1 billion from P64.3 billion in the same month of 2021 as the increase in expenses outpaced that of revenues.

The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) said this brought the January-October deficit to P1.1 trillion, narrower by 7.6 percent than the P1.2 trillion in the comparative 10 months last year.

October expenses were beefed up by 22.2 percent to P387.9 billion while 10-month disbursements grew by 9.9 percent to P4.06 trillion.

At the same time, revenue collections for the month jumped by 14.1 percent to P288.9 billion in October while 10-month receipts surged by 18.3 percent to P2.9 trillion.

The government expects to spend P1.7 trillion beyond its means this year. The deficit as of the end of October represents two-thirds of the full-year amount.

The BTr said that for the nine months up to the end of September, the Philippines’ budget deficit represented 6.5 percent of the domestic economy, easing from 8.3-percent level a year earlier.