<\/p>\n
By Justine Irish D. Tabile, <\/b>Senior Reporter <\/i><\/span><\/p>\n THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT\u2019S (NG) <\/span>budget deficit widened by 9.39% in June as <\/span>spending outpaced revenue growth, although the first-half fi<\/span>scal gap remained broadly in line with the federal government\u2019s program, Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) data showed. <\/span><\/p>\n In an announcement on Thursday, the Treasury said the budget gap ballooned to P264.3 billion from P241.6 billion in the identical month last 12 months.<\/p>\n \u201cThe 9.39% (or P22.7-billion) increase within the fiscal gap was underpinned by a 5.51% year-over-year growth in expenditures outpacing the two.46% increase in revenue collection,\u201d the BTr said.<\/p>\n Month on month, the budget balance widened from the P198.5-billion deficit in May.<\/p>\n Government expenditures increased by 5.51% to P578.7 billion in June from P548.5 billion a 12 months ago. The BTr said faster spending was driven by local government units\u2019 higher share of the National Tax Allotment, and subsidy releases to government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCC) equivalent to Food Terminal, Inc. for the implementation of the Rice-for-All Program.<\/p>\n The Treasury also attributed the rise in disbursements to direct payments made by development partners to suppliers or contractors of varied foreign-assisted rail transport <\/span>projects of the Department of Transportation.<\/span><\/p>\n Primary expenditure (net of interest payments) rose by 5.14% to P516.3 billion in June from P491.1 billion in the identical month last 12 months. This accounted for 89.22% of total disbursements.<\/span><\/p>\n Interest payments increased by 8.73% to P62.4 billion from P57.4 billion a 12 months prior.<\/p>\n In June, NG recorded a primary deficit of P201.9 billion, widening by 9.59% from the P184.2-billion gap a 12 months ago.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, total revenue collection went up by 2.46% to P314.5 billion from P306.9 billion in the identical month a 12 months ago, as higher tax revenues didn’t offset a 43.53% decline in nontax revenues.<\/p>\n Tax revenues, which accounted for the majority or 95.2% of total collections, rose by 6.86% to P299.3 billion from P280.1 billion a 12 months ago.<\/p>\n Collections by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) increased by 5.07% to P210.7 billion in June from P200.5 billion a 12 months prior. Bureau of Customs (BoC) collections jumped by 11.88% to P86.2 billion from P77 billion a 12 months earlier.<\/p>\n The Treasury attributed the upper BIR collections to \u201cintensified tax administration and enforcement efforts, ongoing modernization initiatives, and improved taxpayer compliance.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n However, nontax revenues plunged to P15.1 billion in June from P26.8 billion a 12 months ago.<\/p>\n Broken down, the Treasury\u2019s revenues slumped by 58.45% to P6.7 billion, while revenues from other off<\/span>ices slid by 21.17% to P8.5 billion.<\/p>\n The Treasury attributed the decline to earlier remittance of dividends this 12 months.<\/p>\n SIX-MONTH BUDGET GAP This represented 47.4% of the upwardly revised P1.66-trillion program approved by the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC).<\/span><\/p>\n Total revenue collections rose by 5.67% to P2.39 trillion within the six-month period from P2.26 trillion recorded in the identical period a 12 months ago. This was 49.68% of the P4.81 trillion program for the 12 months.<\/span><\/p>\n As of end-June, tax revenues increased by 5.38% to P2.14 trillion, as BIR collections went up by 4.96% to P1.63 trillion and Customs collections rose by 7.21% to P491.9 billion.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe year-to-date improvement in (BIR) collections was driven by higher collections from corporate income tax, personal income tax, value-added tax (VAT), other percentage taxes, and miscellaneous taxes,\u201d the Treasury said.<\/span><\/p>\n It attributed the rise in BoC collections to a ten.34% rise in VAT collection, mainly as a consequence of higher oil prices.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThese gains effectively offset the two.73% drop in excise collections, partly as a consequence of the decline in the amount of oil imports and the temporary suspension of excise tax on LPG\u00a0 <\/span>and kerosene,\u201d it added.<\/span><\/p>\n Nontax revenues increased by 8.26% to P246.5 billion as of end-June, as a 25.79% jump in BTr income to P182.7 billion offset the 22.63% drop in other of<\/span>f<\/span>ices\u2019 revenues to P63.8 billion.<\/span><\/p>\n Meanwhile, expenditures increased by 4.94% to P3.18 trillion within the January-to-June period from P3.03 trillion a 12 months ago. This was already 49.1% of the DBCC\u2019s P6.47-trillion disbursement program.<\/span><\/p>\n The first budget deficit narrowed by 13.56% to P303.1 billion in the primary six months from P350.7 billion in the identical period last 12 months. <\/span><\/p>\n \u2018ALWAYS CONFIDENT\u2019 \u201cWe’re all the time confident,\u201d he told reporters on Thursday. \u201cThe DoF is confident concerning the abilities of our revenue-generating agencies to have the ability to fulfill their targets for the second half of the 12 months.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n In accordance with BTr, the first-half gap was P1.4 billion or 0.17% narrower than the federal government\u2019s P788.2-billion program.<\/span><\/p>\n Total revenue collections missed the P2.388.5-trillion goal by just 0.01%, after tax revenues missed the P2.16-trillion program by 0.77%. Nontax revenues exceeded the first-half program of P230.2 billion by 7.09%.<\/span><\/p>\n First-half expenditures were also lower by just 0.05% compared with the P3.176-trillion program for the six-month period.<\/span><\/p>\n The first deficit was 2.16% higher than the P296.7-billion gap under this system.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cLooking ahead, we consider the federal government still has room to proceed pump-priming the economy within the second half of the 12 months while remaining inside its fiscal targets,\u201d China Banking Corp. Chief Economist Domini S. Velasquez said in a Viber message.<\/span><\/p>\n Nonetheless, she warned that NG\u2019s fiscal space is becoming increasingly constrained. <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAs such, we expect public spending to be focused on high-multiplier investments, particularly infrastructure and labor-generating projects, that are prone to provide the best boost to growth while preserving fiscal sustainability,\u201d she added.<\/span><\/p>\n Rizal Business Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said the war within the Middle East led to weaker economic growth which slowed down government revenues.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cReform measures to further improve the NG\u2019s fiscal performance and debt management, in addition to priority reform measures\u2026 would help increase government revenues and reduce government expenditures,\u201d he said in a Viber message.<\/span><\/p>\n Nonetheless, Mr. Ricafort said the expected acceleration in second-half spending \u201cwould fundamentally widen the budget deficit in the approaching months.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" MOTORISTS pass by the continued construction of the Tandang Sora station of the Metro Manila Subway Project along Mindanao Avenue in Quezon City, July 22, 2026. \u2014 PHILIPPINE STAR\/MIGUEL DE GUZMAN By Justine Irish D. Tabile, Senior Reporter THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT\u2019S (NG) budget deficit widened by 9.39% in June as spending outpaced revenue growth, although […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":371112,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[4768,18314,1082,17334],"class_list":["post-371111","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-budget","tag-deficit","tag-june","tag-widens"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t
<\/b>For the January-to-June period, the fiscal <\/span>gap widened by 2.79% to P786.8 billion from the P765.5-billion deficit last 12 months, BTr data showed.<\/p>\n
<\/b><\/span>Finance Secretary Frederick D. Go said that <\/span>he stays confident the fiscal level will re<\/span>major inside goal for the second half of the 12 months.<\/span><\/p>\n