April meets revenue target from taxation
The Finance Ministry confirmed on Monday that April was the first month this year that the targets for both direct and indirect taxes were achieved, as the budget deficit is less than half of what had been forecast.
In the first four months of the year the balance of the budget showed a deficit of 2.425 billion euros against a deficit of 9.148 billion in the same period last year and a target for a deficit of 5.74 billion euros this year.
The primary deficit amounted to 306 million euros, down from 1.73 billion euros in the January-to-April period last year and a target for 3.613 billion this year.
Net state budget revenues came to 15.743 billion euros in the year to end-April, posting a rise of 786 million euros or 5.3 percent from the target of 4.957 billion. The revenues from the Public Investments Program posted an increase of 655 million euros from the target, reaching up to 1.715 billion euros.
State expenditure came to 18.168 billion euros, posting a considerable decline by 2.53 billion euros from the target set by the budget, and of 28.2 percent or 7.123 billion euros from the same period last year, when Greece paid interest for the bonds included in the debt restructuring (PSI).
