Serbian Government passes Bill on Budget 2018

The government has adopted the Bill on the Budget for 2018 with planned revenues in the amount of RSD 1,178 billion and expenditures RSD 1,207 billion.

According to a statement by the Ministry of Finance, the planned fiscal deficit at the level of the Republic for the next year is 0.6 percent of GDP, or RSD 28.4 billion, which is RSD 40.7 billion less than the deficit planned for the 2017 budget.

Budget revenues from tax collection are expected to be RSD 988.6 billion, of which VAT collection should bring RSD 503.4 billion.

The next year's budget is planned on the basis of a forecast that in 2018 real GDP growth will be 3.5 percent, with a GDP deflator of 2.8 percent and a consumer price index of 2.7 percent.

This projection of GDP growth, among other things, is based on the element of raising aggregate demand through the increase in salaries and pensions...