The Government’s Consolidated Fund reported a deficit of €614 million in the first quarter of this year, while GDP decreased by 0.5%, according to data published on Friday by the National Statistics Office.

Between January and April 2021, Recurrent Revenue amounted to €1,368 million, 17.2% higher than the €1,167 million reported a year earlier.

On the other hand, total expenditure stood at €1,982 million, 11.7% higher than the previous year.

Recurrent Expenditure totalled €1,752 million. The largest expense was related to the pandemic assistance scheme (€129.4 million).

The interest component of the public debt servicing costs totalled €60 million, a decrease of €2 million when compared to the previous year.

The diff erence between total revenue and expenditure resulted in a deficit of €614 million being reported in the Government’s Consolidated Fund at the end of April 2021. Compared to the same period in 2020, there was an increase in defi cit of €6.5 million.

At the end of April 2021, Central Government debt stood at €7,358 million, a €1,421 million rise from 2020.

In another release, the NSO said provisional estimates indicate that the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the first quarter of 2021 amounted to €3,252 million, registering a decrease of €17.8 million, or 0.5%, when compared to the same quarter of 2020.

In volume terms, GDP fell by 1.8%.