By the end of August, the Government’s Consolidated Fund had reported a deficit of €90.2 million, the National Statistics Office said on Friday.
It said in a statement that between January and August, recurrent revenue amounted to €4,157.6 million, €533.7 million more than a year earlier.
The largest increases were recorded under income tax (€333.5 million), grants (€106 million) and social security (€68.9 million). On the other hand, the main drops in revenue were reported under miscellaneous receipts (€26.8 million) and Central Bank of Malta (€22.2 million).
Total expenditure by the end of August 2023 stood at €4,247.7 million, €229.5 million more than the previous year.
Recurrent expenditure totalled €3,688.8 million, an increase of €170.7 million compared to the €3,518 million reported at the end of August 2022.
The main contributor was a €46.8 million rise reported under contributions to government entities.
The interest component of the public debt servicing costs totalled €133.2 million, an increase of €20.8 million when compared to the previous year.
Between January and August, government’s capital spending amounted to €425.8 million, €38 million higher than 2022. This increase resulted from higher expenditure towards the REPowerEU initiative (€20 million) and property, plant and equipment (€19.8 million).
The difference between total revenue and expenditure resulted in a deficit of €90.2 million. Compared to the same period in 2022, there was a decrease in deficit of €304.2 million. This difference mirrors an increase in total recurrent revenue (€533.7 million), partly offset by a rise in total expenditure, which consists of recurrent expenditure (€170.7 million), interest (€20.8 million) and capital expenditure (€38 million).
At the end of August, central government debt stood at €9,203.1 million, an increase of €644.1 million when compared to 2022.
The increase reported under Malta Government Stocks (€1,047.5 million) was the main contributor to the rise in debt. Higher debt was also reported under euro coins issued in the name of the treasury (€5.1 million).
This increase in debt was partially offset by drops in treasury bills (€280.5 million) and the 62+ Malta Government Savings Bond (€116.7 million). Higher holdings by government funds in Malta Government Stocks resulted in a decrease in debt of €11.1 million.