Finance Ministry revises budget deficit forecast to zl.3.8 billion at year 's end

The Finance Ministry has reported it expects the budget deficit at the end of the year to amount to zl.3.8 billion. The Ministry was made aware of the increasing deficit as early as September, but underestimated the gravity of the issue, claiming it would be about zl.2 billion. The hefty discrepancy is in part due to smaller-than-expected revenues from value added tax (VAT), which resulted in 2.7% less income for the state than had been forecast. Other contributing factors include the reduced personal income tax collected as a consequence of the rise in unemployment. Plans are under way in the Ministry to try to cut spending by up to 3.5% before the end of the year. (Prawo i Gospodarka, pp.1,4).