29th August 2017, Skopje – 2018 Budget is under preparation, projecting higher economic growth, Minister of Finance Dragan Tevdovski said in an interview for Sitel.
As Minister of Finance announced, budget circulars of all budget users are expected, to be followed by a series of meetings, at which their needs and suggestions will be considered. At the moment, the macroeconomic projections are being prepared in details.
– What is very important is that significantly higher economic growth may be expected in 2018 compared to this year, whereas in terms of budget deficit, we strive for higher level of public expenditures that will boost the economic activity. Non-productive costs will be reduced next year as well, so as to give a chance to those production activities having multiplicative effects and boosting the economy – Tevdovski said.
What was pointed out in the interview was that the projected growth for this year is realistically attainable, being also indicated through the data on industrial production, where growth was recorded in May and June, as well as the higher crediting rates and the savings.
According to the Minister of Finance, the budget condition is getting improved. Gross VAT revenues increased in July. Budget liabilities towards the citizens and the companies are timely settled. Denar 3.9 billion on the basis of VAT refund has been returned in June and July, while last year during the same period, Denar 2.2 billion has been returned. This means the liquidity of companies is encouraged, so they can afterwards boost the economy, he said in the interview.
You can see the whole interview here.