State Budget Surplus: €1.48 Billion Surplus from January to August 2024

According to preliminary data on the execution of the state budget on a modified cash basis, a surplus of €1.048 billion was recorded in the January-August 2024 period. This is a significant achievement, considering the 2024 Budget Report had forecasted a deficit of €2.774 billion for this period, compared to a €92 million deficit during the same period in 2023.

The primary budget surplus amounted to €7.571 billion, far exceeding the target of €3.316 billion and last year’s €5.596 billion surplus for the same period. It’s important to note that part of the tax revenue, amounting to €647 million, is accounted for in the 2023 fiscal results. Additionally, deferred payments of €1.854 billion to social security funds and €634 million for defense expenditures, totaling €2.488 billion, do not impact the 2024 fiscal results.

Excluding these amounts, the primary budget surplus for January-August 2024 is €1.120 billion above target.

Therefore, the fiscal surplus differs from the cash-based surplus. It’s also emphasized that this pertains to the primary result of the Central Administration, not the entire General Government, which includes the fiscal results of public entities and local authorities.

Additionally, the data are compared with the 2024 Budget Report targets. In the April 2024 Stability Program, €1.238 billion from updated tax revenue projections for 2024 has already been allocated to increased expenditures for public entities and the National Public Investment Program.

From January to August 2024, net state revenues reached €45.137 billion, exceeding the target by €232 million (or 0.52%). This was even though the target had included a Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) payment of €1.797 billion in March 2024, most of which (€1.687 billion) had already been received in December 2023, with an additional €159 million received in January 2024. Additionally, the June 2024 target included a €1.350 billion payment from the Egnatia Motorway concession contract, signed on March 29, 2024, which is expected to be completed in the coming months.

Tax revenues totaled €43.092 billion, surpassing the target by €1.989 billion (or 4.8%), thanks to the improved collection of personal and corporate income taxes from the previous year, as well as better-than-expected current-year tax performance. The fiscal surplus from tax revenues for 2024 is €1.342 billion.

The Ministry of National Economy and Finance has noted that final revenue categorization will be completed when the official bulletin is issued.

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