By the end of the first quarter of 2024, the Government’s Consolidated Fund reported a surplus of €41.6 million, the National Statistics Office said on Friday.
At the end of March 2024, Recurrent Revenue amounted to €1,656.6 million, €223.0 million higher than the figure reported a year earlier. The largest increases were recorded under Income Tax (€186.1 million), Value Added Tax (€57.0 million) and Social Security (€46.6 million). On the other hand, the main drops in revenue were reported under Grants (€73.5 million), Customs and Excise Duties (€14.8 million) and Sales – Others (€3.6 million).
Total expenditure till March 2024 stood at €1,615.1 million, €45.9 million higher than the previous year.
During the reference period, Recurrent Expenditure totalled €1,456.6 million, an increase of €53.5 million compared to the €1,403.1 million reported at the end of March 2023. The main contributor to this increase was a €62.2 million rise reported under Programmes and Initiatives. Furthermore, increases were also recorded under Personal Emoluments (€23.9 million) and Operational and Maintenance Expenses (€5.0 million). On the other hand, Contributions to Government Entities fell by €37.6 million. The main developments in the Programmes and Initiatives category involved higher outlays towards Social security benefits (€40.9 million), the National airline restructuring assistance (€13.8 million) and EU own resources (€6.5 million).
The interest component of the public debt servicing costs totalled €62.3 million, an increase of €16.9 million when compared to the previous year.
From January to March 2024, Government’s capital spending amounted to €96.2 million, €24.5 million lower than the comparative period in 2023. This decrease resulted from lower expenditure towards Investment incentives (€11.2 million), Direct aid to farmers (€5.1 million) and Digitalisation of health systems (€3.8 million).
The difference between revenue and expenditure resulted in a surplus of €41.6 million in the Government’s Consolidated Fund at the end of March 2024, whereas a year earlier a deficit of €135.5 million was reported. This difference mirrors an increase in total Recurrent Revenue (€223.0 million), partly offset by a rise in total expenditure, which consists of Recurrent Expenditure (€53.5 million), Interest (€16.9 million) and Capital Expenditure (-€24.5 million).
At the end of March 2024, Central Government debt stood at €9,949.6 million, an increase of €783.2 million when compared to 2023. The increase reported under Malta Government Stocks (€1,087.1 million) was the main contributor to the rise in debt. Higher debt was also reported under Foreign Loans (€71.9 million) and Euro coins issued in the name of the Treasury (€4.2 million). This increase in debt was partially offset by drops in Treasury Bills (€280.8 million) and the 62+ Malta Government Savings Bond (€43.8 million). Finally, higher holdings by government funds in Malta Government Stocks resulted in a decrease in debt of €55.3 million.