VINACHEM

State budget revenue and spending in the first four months of this year are estimated at VND316.7 trillion ($13.9 billion) and VND336.8 trillion ($14.8 billion), respectively, and equal to 26.1 per cent and 24.2 per cent of the annual plan, according to figures from the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Domestic revenue reached VND253.8 trillion ($11.16 billion), with VND13 trillion ($571.6 million) from crude oil and VND49.9 trillion ($2.2 billion) from import-export activities.

Land use fees totaled VND29.5 trillion ($1.3 billion), personal income tax VND26.2 trillion ($1.15 billion), industrial and commercial tax from the non-State sector VND52.1 trillion ($2.3 billion) and from foreign direct investment enterprises (excluding crude oil) VND47.3 trillion ($2.1 billion), environmental tax VND9.5 trillion ($417.7 million), and taxes from State-owned enterprises VND49.4 trillion ($2.17 billion).

Regular expenditures were VND246.7 trillion ($10.85 billion), interest payments on debt VND31.6 trillion ($1.4 billion), and investment in infrastructure development VND57.8 trillion ($2.54 billion).

Original debt repayment as at April 15 was estimated at VND54 trillion ($2.37 billion), equal to 33 per cent of the annual plan.

The budget deficit during the first four months therefore came in at VND20.1 trillion ($884 million); the lowest in recent years. The budget deficit last year was nearly VND192 trillion ($8.4 billion).

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc recently approved a medium-term debt management program for the 2016-2018 period, with a target of limiting public debt at no more than 65 per cent of GDP, government debt at 54 per cent of GDP, and national foreign debt at 50 per cent of GDP.

The overall objective of the program is to seek loans at appropriate costs and risk levels to meet the need for balancing the State budget and socioeconomic development in each particular period. Loans must be allocated and used for the right purposes to ensure repayments.

The program sets a specific goal for gradually reducing domestic and foreign borrowings to bridge the State budget deficit. The deficit was set at no more than 5.4 per cent of GDP in 2016, 3.38 per cent in 2017, and 3.3 per cent in 2018.

Government borrowings to fund the State budget deficit for the three-year period are around VND606.4 trillion ($26.7 billion): VND247.2 trillion ($10.86 billion) in 2016, VND172.3 trillion ($7.6 billion) in 2017, and VND186.9 trillion ($8.2 billion) in 2018.

Borrowings for repayments of the principal of the State budget debt are VND414.4 trillion ($18.2 billion), with VND204.4 trillion ($9 billion) to be raised in 2016, VND144 trillion ($6.3 billion) in 2017, and VND138 trillion ($6.1 billion) in 2018. The new loans for annual principal repayment is decided by the National Assembly (NA) based on a report from the government.

Arrangements for foreign loans for re-lending are some VND118.4 trillion ($5.2 billion), including about VND32 trillion ($1.4 billion) in 2016, VND42.4 trillion ($1.86 billion) in 2017, and VND44 trillion ($1.94 billion) in 2018. - VNN -