THE government’s budget balance remained in deficit in March as spending outpaced revenues, Bureau of the Treasury data showed on Thursday.
The P349.7-billion shortfall — from revenues of P305.1 billion and expenditures of P654.8 billion — was higher than February’s P171.2 billion and the year-earlier P342.9 billion.
“This outturn reflects a higher year-on-year increase in expenditures of P2.6 billion, which outpaced the P25.8 billion rise in revenues,” the Treasury said in a statement.
The year to date budget balance remained in deficit at P355.5 billion, markedly lower than the P446 billion recorded in January-March 2025.
March revenues were 9.25 percent higher than the yearago P279.3 billion but fell from February’s P361.3 billion. Spending, meanwhile, rose by 5.23 percent from P622.2 billion a year ago and the previous month’s P532.5 billion.
Year to date, revenues and expenditures grew by 13.74 percent and 3.22 percent, respectively, to P1.13 trillion and P1.49 trillion from P998.2 billion and P1.44 trillion.
Revenues from taxes rose 6.51 percent to P276.5 billion in March from P259.6 billion a month earlier and were up 4.04 percent to P969.2 billion from P931.5 billion year to date.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue accounted for the bulk of March tax revenues at P187.3 billion, 6.60 percent higher than the P175.7 billion recorded a year ago. It was also higher than February’s P173.2 billion.
To date, the agency’s collections grew 4.17 percent to P719.2 billion from P690.4 billion.
The Bureau of Customs, meanwhile, saw March collections rise by 5.5 percent to P84.8 billion from P80.4 billion a year earlier. This pushed the January-March tally up 3.47 percent to P239.4 billion from P231.4 billion.
The tax take from other offices rose by 24.38 percent to P4.5 billion and was 8.67 percent higher at P10.6 billion year to date.
Nontax revenues, meanwhile, surged by 45.54 percent to P28.5 billion in March from P19.6 billion a year earlier. Year to date, it also accelerated by 149.25 percent to P166.1 billion from P66.6 billion in January-March 2025.
Treasury collections alone surged by 141.14 percent to P20.9 billion in March from P8.7 billion a year ago. This brought the three-month tally to P130.0 billion, up 301.9 percent from P32.3 billion.
Other offices generated nontax revenues of P7.6 billion in March, down 30.27 percent. The three-month total of P36.1 billion was higher by 5.35 percent from P34.3 billion.
Primary expenditures, meanwhile, accounted for P558.4 billion of spending in March, up 4.55 percent from P534.1 billion a year earlier.
Interest payments, which accounted for the rest, rose 9.38 percent to P96.4 billion from P88.1 billion.
Excluding interest payments, the government recorded a primary deficit of P253.3 billion in March, down from P2.54.8 a year earlier.
Year to date, the primary deficit narrowed to P82.4 billion from P205.0 billion last year. NIÑA MYKA PAULINE ARCEO
