Finance Ministry forecasts Ft 230.4 bln deficit for November

The projection raises the deficit for January-November to Ft 1,740 billion and allows for a Ft 316.4 billion deficit in December to meet the full-year target of Ft 2,056.4 billion, figures published on the ministry's web site on Thursday show. Calculated with projected GDP of Ft 23,270 billion GDP in 2007, the full year cash-flow deficit is expected to reach 8.84% of GDP. Local councils' debt is expected to raise the deficit by another 0.7% of GDP.
The ministry still maintains its 10.1%-of-GDP full-year deficit forecast, according to the EU's accrual-based accounting standards, state secretary in charge of budget affairs István Várfalvi told a press conference on Thursday. The ministry projects an accrual-based deficit of Ft 104.2 billion in November, raising the deficit for January-November to Ft 1,488.8 billion. The December deficit must not exceed Ft 460.2 billion if the full-year target is to be met. The projections take into account debts of Ft 60 billion to be take over in November and of Ft 292 billion to be taken over in December from the National Motorway Zrt (NA). Várfalvi noted that, excluding the debts taken over from NA, the cash flow-based general government deficit would have been naught. (Mti-Eco)