By Kris M. Crismundo
MANILA, (PNA) – The National Government has narrowed budget deficit for September 2013 by 43 percent to P18.6 billion from P32.8 billion deficit in the same month last year.
The Department of Finance (DOF) reported Wednesday that lower budget shortfall for September was pushed by 21 percent climb on government revenue in the previous month which posted at P127.3 billion from September 2012’s P105.3 billion.
Likewise, government spending went up by 6 percent for the same month reaching a total of P146 billion from last year’s P138.1 billion.
In effect, the national government’s budget deficit for January to September 2013 recorded P101.2 billion shortfall which is below the P144.5 billion-ceiling for the first nine months of the year.
This year’s nine month-shortfall also went down three percent compared to last year’s same period budget shortage of P103.9 billion.
“The September report shows an even healthier picture of Government fiscal performance as our revenues posted a strong increase over last year’s collections. Coupled with strong growth in our expenditures over the first nine months of the year, we can see that the dynamism of our operations has yet to wane even as we approach the last quarter of 2013,” said DOF Secretary Cesar Purisima.