Romania's public deficit reportedly at 3.6% of GDP in H1
<p>Romania's general government budget deficit reached 3.61% of GDP in January-June, according to unofficial data quoted by <a href="https://www.profit.ro/taxe-si-consultanta/exclusiv-deficitul-bugetar-pentru-prima-jumatate-a-anului-nu-e-unul-incurajator-dar-iunie-devine-cea-mai-buna-luna-din-acest-an-21650856?mc_cid=4fb69150e9&amp;mc_eid=cd1f92f96c" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Profit.ro</a>.&nbsp;Official data will be published after July 25.</p>

<p>The H1 deficit mentioned by Profit.ro implies a moderate 0.21% of GDP deficit in June (yet ten times the 0.02% deficit in June 2023) but a significant slippage for the first half of the year compared to the public gap in the same period of last year (2.34%).&nbsp;</p>

<p>The deficit-to-GDP ratio in H1 thus rose by 1.23% compared to the same period last year, while the government still insists it can reduce the full-year figure to 5% from 5.7% in 2023.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The new Pension Law will put more pressure on the public deficit in Q4, justifying the European Commission's concerns about the full-year gap reaching 6.9% of GDP. Independent projections, such as the one expressed by UniCredit Bank, are even more pessimistic about the fiscal slippage in Romania.&nbsp;</p>

<p><em>iulian@romania-insider.com</em></p>

<p><em>(Photo source: <a href="https://www.dreamstime.com/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Vlad Ispas/Dreamstime.com</a>)</em></p>