Updated at 12.15pm with ministry statement

By the end of July 2018, Central Government Debt stood at €5,355.5 million, down by €192.5 million over the corresponding month last year, however with expenditure outstripping revenue, the deficit reached €117.2 million.

The debt went down as the result of lower Malta Government Stocks and foreign loans, which decreased by €588 million and €10.4 million respectively. On the other hand, Treasury Bills added €209.6 million, the 62+ Malta Government Savings Bond added €192.9 million, and Euro coins issued in the name of the Treasury increased by €5.2 million, among other things.

As a result, the interest component of public debt servicing costs stood at €120.8 million, a drop from €125 million reported last year.

The National Statistics Office reported on Friday that total recurrent revenue between January and July increased by €97.5 million but total expenditure went up by €109.7 million.

Main categories for revenue:
• Income Tax + €96.1 million
• Value Added Tax +€34.7 million
• Social Security +€25.4 million
• Licences, Taxes and Fines +€18.1 million
• Grants -€64.8 million

Main categories for expenditure:
• Personal Emoluments +€34.0 million
• Contributions to Government Entities +€30.8 million
• Programmes and Initiatives +€19.5 million
• Road construction and improvements +€15.3 million
• Investment incentives +€10.8million

Surplus recorded in July

During July, the government recorded a surplus of €25 million in the Consolidated Fund. The surplus reflected an increase of €28 million in total revenue while total expenditure decreased by €10 million over July of last year.

“We have been able to start the second half of this year with a monthly surplus. This augurs well for reaching the fiscal target for this year,” Finance Minister Edward Scicluna commented.