Deficit in Romania's aggregate national budget widens to 3.55pct of GDP nine months into 2023

The deficit in Romania's aggregate national budget rose to 3.55% of GDP nine months into 2023, to RON 56.46 billion, as against RON 41.7 billion and 2.96% of GDP nine months into 2022.The implementation of the aggregate national budget in the first eight months of 2023 ended on a deficit of RON 42.19 billion, or 2.65% of GDP.According to data published on Thursday by the Ministry of Finance, total revenues amounted to RON 368.03 billion in the first nine months of 2023, up 11% y-o-y.Wage and income tax receipts totalled RON 29.92 billion, up 21.4% y-o-y on increasing dividend tax receipts (56.4%) and pension income tax ( 42.4%). At the same time, payroll tax receipts advanced 10.6%, influenced by the expansion to the agricultural sector and the food industry of the tax incentives granted to construction workers, and by the new tax measures modifying personal deductions, including tax exemption of RON 200 per month for employees who collect the minimum wage.Insurance contributions went up to RON 116.73 billion, up 12.8% y-o-y.Profit tax receipts totalled RON 20.4 billion, up 11.4% y-o-y on higher profit tax receipts (13.9%).On the other hand, VAT net receipts were standing at RON 75.12 billion, up 8.8% y-o-y.Excise duty revenues totalled RON 27.31 billion, up 3.2% y-o-y. Revenue from excise duties on tobacco products advanced 7.5%, while revenue from excise duties on energy products remained negative at -0.7%.Other taxes and charges on goods and services (mainly additional revenues from the energy sector) totalled RON 14.59 billion, up 10.4% y-o-y. Non-tax revenues totalled RON 32.39 billion, up 2% y-o-Y, including on better sales of greenhouse gas emission certificates.On the other hand, there was a decrease in receipts from dividends and royalties as a result of declining energy prices and payments from the net income of the National Bank of Romania.The amounts reimbursed by the European Union on account of payments made and donations totalled RON 32.59 billion lei, up 22.2% y-o-y.As regards the outlays of the aggregate national budget, they were worth RON 424.49 billion lei, up 13.7% in nominal terms y-o-y. Expressed as a percentage of the Gross Domestic Product, expenditures in the first nine months of 2023 increased by 0.2 percentage points y-o-y, from 26.5% of GDP in 2022 to 26.7% of GDP in 2023.Personnel expenses totalled RON 96.69 billion, up 10.8% from the same period of the previous year. As a share of GDP, personnel expenses made up 6.1% of GDP, 0.1 percentage points lower y-o-y.Government expenditures on goods and services were RON 53.99 billion, up 9.4% y-o-y. An increase is reflected in local budgets, of 11.4% y-o-y, as well as of 11.9% in the budget of the National Healthcare Social Insurance Fund for the refund of subsidised medicines and medicines used in national healthcare programmes.Interest expenses were RON 23.56 billion lei, up RON 2.61 billion, or 12.5% y-o-y.Social security expenses increased to RON 145.11 billion lei, 9.9% y-o-y. The developments in social security expenses were mainly influenced by an increase from January 1, 2023, of the pension computation point by 12.5%, from RON 1,586 to RON 1,785, as the minimum social security pension went up from RON 1,000 to RON 1,125 lei, pensions equal to or less than RON 3,000 lei were supplemented , and an extra month allowance was granted to the disabled in the form of a compensatory allowance.At the same time, the social security expenses were also influenced by payments from the national budget of subsidies for electricity and natural gas bill, which in the first nine months of 2023 reached RON 4.05 billion lei, and an increase in public allowances for children starting January 1, 2023.Subsidy expenses were RON 14.21 billion including subsidies for passenger transport, for supporting agricultural producers, as well as for the compensation scheme for the consumption of electricity and natural gas by non-household consumers (RON 5.62 billion) which represents 39.55% of the total subsidies.Other expenses were RON 7.34 billion lei, representing mainly payment titles issued by the National Authority for the Returning of Properties under the legislation in force, scholarships for pupils and students, aid for religious denominations, other civil compensations.Outlays on projects running on non-repayable external funds (including agriculture subsidies from the European Union) were RON 37.86 billion, up 34.1% y-o-y. Investment expenses, which include capital expenses, as well as those related to development programmes funded from internal and external sources, amounted to RON 54.33 billion, up 40.2% over RON 38.76 billion in 2022.