The Turkish Treasury and Finance Ministry has announced today its budget figures for the month of October 2020, for which a budget deficit of TL 4,892 million (USD 588.7 million) was shown, a 67.2% decrease on the deficit of TL 14,896 million recorded in the same month of the previous year.
The Ministry announced total government revenue for October as TL 92,766 million (USD 11,163 million), including tax revenues of TL 76,615 million (USD 9,220 million), and budget expenditure as TL 97,658 million (USD 11,752 million), including TL 11,758 million (USD 1,415 million) in interest payments. October 2020 month end USD 1 = TL 8.31 rate was used.
For the first ten months of 2020, there was a deficit of TL 145,483 million (USD 21,146 million), an increase of 44.5% on the TL 100,714 million deficit for the same period of the previous year. Total revenue was TL 822,188 million (USD 119,504 million), including tax revenue of TL 655,345 million (USD 95,254 million). Total expenditure was TL 967,671 million (USD 140,650 million), including interest payments of TL 119,581 million (USD 17,381 million). The average USD/TL rate used was USD 1 = TL 6.88.
The comparatively small deficit for October 2020 came as a surprise and a reassurance that the government’s recent fiscal tightening was showing positive results. Tax revenue in October 2020 was 40.4% higher than the figure for the same month of the previous year, and this is largely as a result of a 69.4% increase in special consumption tax (ÖTV).
The budget deficit for the year of 2019 was TL 123,693 million, a 69.9% increase on the deficit figure of TL 72,813 million for the same period of the previous year. Total revenue for the year of 2019 is TL 875,796 million, including tax revenues of TL 673,315 million, and budget expenditure is TL 999,489 million, including TL 99,940 million in interest payments. Using an average exchange rate of USD = TL 5.65, the deficit for the year of 2019 is USD 21,893 million.
The 2020 budget foresees total expenditures of TL 1,095,461 million, total revenues of TL 956,588 million, and a budget deficit of TL 138,673 million. The budget deficit of TL 145,483 million for the first ten months of 2020 has surpassed the budget deficit forecast for the whole year by 4.9%.