Bulgaria’s Finance Ministry has recorded a consolidated Budget deficit of 51.9 million leva in the first eight months of the year on a cash basis, lower than the ministry’s forecast of 100 million leva issued last month.
The figure represented a significant drop compared to the same period of 2022, when Bulgaria recorded a Budget surplus of 1.7 billion leva. The ministry did not issue a forecast for September.
Revenue in January-August was 42.48 billion leva, up 8.1 per cent from last year. Tax revenues were 33.07 billion leva, an increase of 9.8 per cent, the ministry said.
Budget spending was 42.53 billion leva in the first eight months of the year, up 13.1 per cent compared to the same period of 2022, with the bulk of the increase going to higher pensions and salaries in the public sector, as well as increased capital spending, the ministry said.