The deficit recorded by the General Government for the fourth quarter of 2010 amounted to €51.7 million, up from €11.0 million in the comparable period of 2009.
During the December quarter, total revenue stood at €673.0 million, an increase of €14.5 million compared to the corresponding quarter in 2009. The main contributors were ‘taxes on production and imports’ (+€26.2 million), ‘social contributions receivable’ (+€7.9 million) and ‘capital transfers receivable (+€6.6 million). Conversely, a notable decline in revenue was recorded in ‘current taxes on income and wealth’ by €27.5 million.
Furthermore, total expenditure stood at €724.6 million, up by €55.1 million from the comparable period in 2009. These increases were mainly triggered by ‘intermediate consumption’ (+€15.7 million), ‘gross capital formation’ (+€11.7 million), and ‘social benefits and social transfers in kind’ (+€9.1 million), among others. On the contrary, ‘current transfers payable’ registered a fall of €2.3 million.
During the period under review, the major declines in financial transactions in assets were recorded in ‘currency and deposits’ and ‘other accounts receivable’ of €87.4 million and €99.8 million respectively. On the other hand, ‘short-term loans’ increased by €14.9 million, mainly triggered by the loan granted to Air Malta plc as part of its restructuring which amounted to €15.1 million.
Regarding financial transactions in liabilities, ‘long-term securities’ registered an increase of €75.2 million while ‘short-term securities’ decreased by €82.3 million. Conversely, ‘short-term loans’ exhibited an increase of €3.4 million while ‘long-term loans’ exhibited a decrease of €2.7 million. Moreover, a decline of €106.5 million was recorded in ‘other accounts payable.’
Total General Government debt outstanding at the end of December 2010 advanced by €294.3 million from the comparable period in 2009, and amounted to €4,248.3 million. Central Government debt increased by €294.2 million. This was underpinned by higher long-term securities (Malta Government Stocks), which went up by €387.2 million. On the other hand, Central Government short-term securities and loans declined by €96.4 million and €0.4 million respectively. The euro coins issued in the name of the Treasury, which are considered as a currency liability pertaining to the Central Government, amounted to €41.0 million, a rise of €3.8 million over the euro coin stock recorded at the end of December 2009. In addition, the Local Government debt edged up by €0.1 million.