Govt posts surplus despite spending

THE national government has avoided incurring a budget deficit in January and instead posted a surplus even if expenditures exceeded revenues during the month, data released by the Department of Finance (DOF) on Thursday showed.

The government would have incurred a P34.2 billion deficit in January, higher by 75 percent or P14.7 billion than the year-earlier level as it expanded spending for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of various typhoon-hit areas.