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Cyprus News Agency: News in English, 12-04-24
CONTENTS
[01] Government committed to reducing fiscal deficit to 2.5%
[01] Government committed to reducing fiscal deficit to 2.5%
The government remains committed to the target it has set to bring
its deficit down to 2.5% in 2012, a Ministry of Finance press release
reads. Commenting on figures released Monday by Eurostat on the economy
for 2011, the Finance Ministry underlines that the government remains
committed to a balanced budget based on the EU Fiscal Pact, which was
signed by Cyprus President Demetris Christofias on March 2.
The year 2011 was indeed a difficult one for the economy of Cyprus,
the Ministry said, adding that "in late summer of 2011 the government
began an effort, with the valuable contribution of the parliamentary
parties and the social partners and based on the European Commission's
guidelines, to prepare and adopt three packages of measures for the
economy, receiving the Commission's favorable comments".
The Ministry of Finance notes that the adoption of measures aiming at
fiscal consolidation brought its fiscal deficit down to 6.3% in 2011,
confirming its predictions for a fiscal deficit around 6%. On the
increase of public debt, the Finance Ministry explains that it has risen
by 4.7%, as Eurostat's figures show, after a loan agreement signed with
Russia in order to fully cover the Republic's financial needs for 2012.
According to the Ministry, the results of the first quarter for 2012,
presenting a slight deviation from the budget targets, indicate that
the target to bring fiscal deficit down to 2.5% can be achieved with the
adoption, if needed, of additional measures that will be determined with
the social partners, following intensive consultations.
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