The government’s consolidated fund reported a deficit of €848.9 million by the end of June 2021, the National Statistics Office said.
This was €46.8 million lower than in the same period a year earlier.
The NSO said that in the first six months of 2021, recurrent revenue amounted to €2,162.1 million, 18.8% more than the €1,819.3 million reported a year earlier.
The largest increase was recorded under income tax (€189.7 million).
By the end of June 2021, total expenditure stood at €3,010.9 million, 10.9% higher than the previous year.
During the reference period, recurrent expenditure totalled €2,651.9 million, a rise of €416.9 million in comparison to the €2,235 million reported by the end of June 2020.
The main contributor to this increase was a €326.3million rise reported under programmes and initiatives.
The largest development in this category was related to the pandemic assistance scheme (€198.9 million), which includes the COVID-19 business assistance programme.
The interest component of the public debt servicing costs totalled €90.5 million, a decrease of €2.6 million when compared to the previous year.
By the end of June 2021, government’s capital spending amounted to €268.5 million, €118.3 million lower than in 2020.
The drop largely resulted from the reclassification of the COVID-19 business assistance programme(€154 million), from capital to recurrent expenditure.
The difference between total revenue and expenditure resulted in a deficit of €848.9 million being reported in the government’s consolidated fund at the end of June.
Compared to the same period in 2020, there was a decrease in deficit of €46.8 million. This difference mirrors an increase in total recurrent revenue (€342.8 million), largely offset by a rise in total expenditure.
Changes in expenditure and revenue reflect developments related to COVID-19.
At the end of June, central government debt stood at €7,797.8 million, a €1,421.2 million rise from 2020.
Increases reported under Malta government stocks (€981.5 million) and foreign loans (€419.9 million) were the main contributors to the rise in debt.
The latter increase in debt was a result of the €420 million EU loan from the temporary support to mitigate unemployment risks in an emergency (SURE) instrument.
Higher debt was also reported under the 62+ Malta government savings bond (€90 million) and euro coins issued in the name of the treasury (€1 million).
This rise in debt was partially offset by a decrease in Treasury Bills (€68.3 million).
Lower holdings by government funds in Malta government stocks resulted in a decrease in debt of €2.7 million.