Budget posts $102 million surplus in August

ANKARA-Anadolu Agency

Turkey’s central government budget balance posted a surplus of 576 million Turkish Liras ($102 million) in August, the Treasury and Finance Ministry reported on Sept. 16.

In the same month of 2018, the central government budget produced a deficit of 5.8 billion liras.

In August this year, the country’s budget revenues soared 34.1 percent on an annual basis, totaling at 94.3 billion liras, while budget expenditures went up 23.2 percent to 93.7 billion liras.

Data from the ministry showed that tax collection was up 9.3 percent in the month from a year ago to stand at 66.6 billion liras, with special consumption tax revenues rising 15.8 percent on an annual basis to 13.9 billion liras.

Value added tax (VAT) revenues showed an 18 percent decline to 5.58 billion liras.

Income and corporate tax revenues increased by 20.1 percent and 9.2 percent, respectively to 12.8 billion and 17.4 billion liras.

Non-tax revenues soared nearly 232 percent on an annual basis to stand at 25.8 billion in August, according to data.

Consequently, the central government budget produced a primary surplus of 11.44 billion liras, marking a robust 367 percent increase from a year ago.

January-August performance

In the first eight months of the year, the central government budget balance ran a deficit of 68.1 billion liras, up from the 50.8 billion liras of shortfall in the same period of 2018.

The country’s budget revenues surged 21.6 percent year-on-year to 590.7 billion liras in January-August.

Budget expenditures also saw an increase of 22.8 percent to 658.8 billion liras during the same period.

Excluding interest payments, the budget balance posted a surplus of 1.2 billion liras from January to August.

The central government’s tax revenues amounted to 432.7 billion liras while interest payments amounted to some 69.3 billion liras in the same period.

In the new economic program, released in September last year, the government targets a budget deficit of 80.6 billion liras (or 1.8 percent of national income) for 2019.

The government also foresaw a primary surplus of 36.7 billion liras for this year.

The government expects the budget deficit to widen to 98.1 billion liras (or 1.9 of GDP) in 2020 while it forecasts the primary surplus at a higher 49.6 billion liras.