PH budget deficit narrowed in October on sharp revenue rise

MANILA  -The government’s budget deficit was markedly smaller in October than a year ago after growth in revenue collections outpaced that of state spending during the month.

Treasury data released Wednesday showed the budget gap shrank 65.27 percent year-on-year to P34.4 billion in October from P99 billion a year ago. This was also significantly narrower than the P250.9 billion gap last September.

That the government’s budget balance remained in deficit means the state continued to spend beyond its means. To bridge the budget gap, the state had to borrow from creditors at home and abroad.

Revenue collections jumped 33.56 percent compared with a year ago to P385.8 billion, bringing the 10-month total to P3.22 trillion.

Government spending, meanwhile, rose 8.32 percent year-on-year to P420.2 billion amid higher operating expenses from the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections during the month. Since the beginning of the year, expenditures amounted to P4.24 trillion, up by an annualized rate of 4.52 percent.

So far, the government remains safe from overshooting its deficit cap for the entire year.

Data showed the January to October budget gap amounted to P1.02 trillion, accounting for only 68 percent of the P1.5-trillion deficit limit set by the Marcos administration for 2023.