MANILA - The Bureau of Treasury said the Philippines’ budget deficit for March narrowed to P195.9 billion from last year’s P210.3 billion on the back of 11.32 percent year-over-year revenue growth vis-à-vis a 3.18 increase increase in government spending.

However, the budget gap in the first quarter stood at P272.6 billion marking a slight increase of 0.65 percent or P1.8 billion from the P270.9 billion fiscal deficit recorded for the same period a year ago.

Treasury said revenues in the first quarter hit P933.7 billion, or 14.05 percent higher than in the first three months of 2023.

Government spending meanwhile reached P1.2 trillion in the Jan-March period this year.

The Philippines racked up large budget deficits and saw its debt levels rise in recent years as it emerged from the pandemic and embarked on an ambitious infrastructure push.

Economic managers however said these were not a cause for worry as the country’s fundamentals remained sound.