October 26 (SeeNews) - Romania's consolidated budget showed a nine-month deficit equivalent to 0.49% of the projected GDP, the finance ministry said late on Tuesday.
Romania's consolidated budget deficit totalled 3.7 billion lei ($896 million/823 million euro) for the January-September period, as revenue fell 2% on the year to 165.8 billion lei, while spending rose 4% to 169.5 billion lei, finance ministry data showed.
In the like period a year earlier, Romania's consolidated budget showed a surplus of 6.16 billion lei, equivalent to 0.87% of its GDP.
In the January-September period of 2016, revenues from income tax increased 12.3%, excise duties climbed 6.4%, and social security contributions increased 6.9%.
On the other hand, VAT revenue decreased by 8.6%, reflecting a VAT cut from 24% to 20% in January 2016 and a reduction to 9% for some food items, in effect from June 2015.
Investments totalled 17.3 billion lei, or 2.3% of GDP, for the first nine months of the year. By comparison, in the first nine months of 2015 investments amounted to 19 billion lei, or 2.7% of GDP.
For the January-August period, Romania's posted a budget deficit equivalent to 0.4% of GDP.
Romania targets a consolidated budget gap of 2.95% of GDP on a cash basis in 2016, below the 3% EU ceiling. The country's consolidated budget for 2015 showed a deficit of 1.47% of GDP, below the 1.85% limit set in the fiscal strategy for that year.
(1 euro=4.4909 lei)