Romania on track to meet 5.84%/GDP deficit target for 2022 - fin min

"The six-month budget execution showed us that we can keep the deficit under control, you saw that we had a 1.7% gap, and we will also keep the end-July deficit below 2% of GDP. We maintain our goal for a 5.84% budget deficit this year," finance minister Adrian Caciu said during a live-streamed press conference at the end of a weekly government meeting.

The government approved a budget revision for this year, planning an increase in revenues by 30 billion lei to some 470 billion lei, mostly due to additional taxes collected from gas and electricity producers, data posted on its website showed. The expenditure budget was increased by 33 billion lei to some 550 billion lei to reflect to higher social assistance, interest and personnel expenses.

According to Caciu, the finance ministry maintains its expectations for 3.5% economic growth this year.

Romania's Fiscal Council said in an analysis published on Thursday, after the government approved the budget revision, that the plausible cash budget deficit for this year would be around 7% of GDP, as revenues are overestimated.

The Fiscal Council is a government body created in June 2010 which has the role of advising authorities in order to ensure a healthy budget.

Romania closed 2021 with a consolidated budget deficit of 6.72%, compared to a budget gap of 9.61% in 2020.

Romania is in the excessive deficits procedure applicable since April 2020 because it has exceeded the EU's 3% budget deficit threshold set by the Maastricht Treaty.

(1 euro=4.8793 lei)