The Lebanese Finance Ministry announced on Wednesday that the budget deficit for the first four months of this year fell to 40.68 percent, down from 53.10 percent for the same period last year, reaching $636 million compared to just over $1 billion in the same period of 2000.
According to the Daily Star, the ministry attributed the drop in deficit spending to a decrease in expenditures. Spending in the first four months fell to $1.5 billion from $1.9 billion.
However, the deficit for April alone slipped by 52.01 percent, from 56.22 percent in the same month of last year, said the daily.
The paper quoted a ministry statement saying that “revenues jumped to $874 million in the first four months of this year, from $858 million in the same period of 2000.” It added that the primary surplus, excluding debt servicing, rose to $431 million from $214 million in the same reporting period, it added.
Revenues from customs duties dropped to $326 million from $372 million.
“The slight drop in customs revenues form the government’s decision this year to cut tariffs across the board,” the ministry said in its statement – Albawaba.com
