28.11.2011

Budget stance on a cash basis continues to improve steadily as against the previous year, with budget deficit on a monthly basis being down to BGN 14.8 million in October against BGN 376.0 million reported in October 2010. CFP deficit has improved by BGN 1,060.7 million or 1.6 p.p. of GDP in nominal terms on a cash basis in 2011 compared to the same period of 2010 when it amounted to BGN 1,902.7 million or 2.7% of GDP. The Government continued its rigid fiscal policy with regard to revenues and did not allow the traditional spending before elections, which was the case in 2009 when reported budget deficits on a monthly basis for June and July 2009 were BGN 377.5 million and BGN 564.3 million respectively.

The budget balance under the Consolidated Fiscal Programme (CFP) as of end-October 2011 is negative, amounting to BGN 842.1 million (1.1 % of projected GDP), and is formed by a deficit under the national budget of 326.4 million and a deficit under EU funds of BGN 515.6 million. The fiscal reserve amounts to BGN 5.3 billion as of 31 October 2011.

At end-October CFP revenues and grants stand at BGN 20,518.7 million or 78.3 % of those planned in the 2011 State Budget Law. Compared to the same period of 2010, proceeds report a nominal growth of BGN 1,285.2 million or by 6.7% which is mostly due to higher revenue from indirect taxes and social security contributions. Revenues from indirect taxes have increased by BGN 966.1 million (12.5 %) compared to the ten months of 2010. Revenues from direct taxes also report some growth by 9.3% compared to the data reported in the same period of 2010, while revenues from other taxes under the Corporate Income Tax Law report a growth by 13.1%.

The expenditures under the consolidated budget, including the contribution of the Republic of Bulgaria to the EU budget, as of 31 October amount to BGN 21,360.8 million, or 75.8% of the planned for the year. In nominal terms, expenditures remain close to those reported in the same period of last year (a 1.1% growth only), with an increase reported mainly in the social security expenditure and maintenance costs.

The part of Bulgaria\'s contribution to the EU budget, as paid as of end-October 2011 from the central budget, amounts to BGN 587.8 million, which complies with Council Regulation 1150/2000.

Data on consolidated FLSP budget implementation on a cash basis as of 31 October 2011 will be published by 1 December 2011.