Budget deficit for 2003 reaches P199.8-B

The national budget deficit for 2003 came below the P202 billion target, but was P1 billion more than the P198.6 billion originally projected in December and reached P199.8 billion as the Arroyo administration made a last-minute payment on its accounts payable for the year.

National Treasurer Sergio Edeza told reporters that the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) paid off some of its accounts payable towards the end of December, adding at least P1.2 billion to the final figure for 2003.

The 2003 fiscal position, despite the increase in the deficit, however, ended better than expected in 2003 as a result of tight budget controls and the significant improvements in revenue collections.

Finance Secretary Juanita Amatong said the tightening of government expenditures was deliberate and even the unpredictable impact of constructive cash was successfully contained in the final months of the year.

"This year, our marching orders are the same. We will maintain our austerity measures and tight budget controls," Amatong said.

The Arroyo administration overshot its revenue target for 2003, propelled mainly by the record performance of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) and the improvements in the collection of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

Amatong said the 2004 deficit target will be maintained at P198 billion. Applying the same fiscal strategies it used this year, Amatong expressed optimism that the government could at least meet its deficit target or even perform better.

"What we have to do is to demonstrate that the fiscal program is not faltering," she said. "We have to show a downward trend in the deficit over a long period until we balance the budget in 2009."

Expenditures were offset by the record performance of the BOC which, according to Customs Commissioner Antonio Bernardo reached P106.047 billion, way above the P100.057 billion target set at the beginning of 2003.

The target was exceeded as early as November when the BOC announced that its collection has already reached P103.058 billion with two weeks still left before the end of the year.

Internal Revenue Commissioner Guillermo Parayno, on the other hand, said the BIR’s collections were expected to be at least P1 billion over its full-year target although the bureau was still finalizing its numbers.

"Our worst case scenario is that we could miss our target by P200 million but the best case scenario is that we will exceed it by P1 billion," Parayno said. "But based on early indications, there is a good chance that we will exceed this target by over P1 billion."