The Romanian Ministry of Finance announced that the budget deficit rose to 8.65% of GDP last year, up from 5.61% of GDP in 2023. The 2024 budget was initially designed with a deficit target of 5% of GDP, reports IPN.
A higher budget deficit was recorded in 2009, reaching 9.5%, and during the pandemic year 2020, when it stood at 9.2%.
The Ministry of Finance stated that the execution of the consolidated general budget for 2024, according to preliminary data, ended with a deficit of 152.72 billion lei, equivalent to 8.65% of GDP, compared to a deficit of 90.06 billion lei, or 5.61% of GDP, recorded in 2023.
Total revenues for 2024 amounted to 574.60 billion lei, marking an annual increase of 10.4%, supported by a rise in current revenue collections (+17.4%). This was primarily driven by insurance contributions, VAT, excise duties, income and salary tax, corporate profit tax, and non-fiscal revenues.
The consolidated general budget expenditures totaled 727.32 billion lei in 2024, reflecting a nominal increase of 19.1% compared to the previous year. As a share of GDP, expenditures grew by 3.16 percentage points compared to 2023, rising from 38.06% of GDP to 41.22% of GDP.
