Public deficit widens, primary surplus increased seven percent

The State’s total budget deficit widened by nine percent to $1.25 billion in the first half of 2016 compared with the same period in 2015.

The primary surplus increased seven percent to $1.18 billion. The primary surplus represents the surplus before the deduction of debt servicing expenditure that includes interest payments and foreign debt principal repayment.

Total revenues grew by four percent to almost five billion dollars while total expenditure increased by five percent to around $6.23 billion.

Due to lower oil prices, cash transfers to the country’s power utility, Electricité du Liban (EDL), plummeted by $293.2 million or 47 percent compared with the first half of 2015. This was offset by increases in a variety of expenditure items except for foreign debt principal repayment, which decreased 11 percent.

The largest increase was recorded by budget-based expenditure carried forward from previous years, which jumped $259.3 million or 42 percent.