"2010 budget deficit at 3.5 pct of GDP"

Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic announced on Friday that the planned budget deficit for the year 2010 would reach to RSD 104bn. That figure amounts to 3.5 percent of the GDP. "2010 budget deficit at 3.5 pct of GDP" The government is working intensely on the 2010 budget, which will include the consolidated deficit of four percent of the GDP at the state level sector, said Cvetkovic in his opening speech at the presentation of the Foreign Investors Council's White Book. According to him, the Serbian government is planning a GDP increase of around 1.5 percent, which is a “conservative” evaluation made in talks with the International Monetary Fund. Cvetkovic pointed out that by the end of the year the budget deficit would total less than expected four percent of the GDP. The prime minister underlined that the GDP decrease would amount to less than 3 percent by the end of 2009, which was better than the evaluated 4.5 percent drop. He also quoted that Romania, for example, was expecting the GDP decrease of 8.6 percent, Croatia 5.2, Hungary 6.7, the Czech Republic 4.3, Slovakia 4.7 percent, and that the drop was even higher in the Baltic countries. The government's next year priority would be the recovery of economy, reform of the public sector and further improvement of the economy, with a special accent on infrastructure building, Cvetkovic concluded. Cvetkovic addresses the conference (Tanjug)

"2010 budget deficit at 3.5 pct of GDP"

The government is working intensely on the 2010 budget, which will include the consolidated deficit of four percent of the GDP at the state level sector, said Cvetković in his opening speech at the presentation of the Foreign Investors Council's White Book.

According to him, the Serbian government is planning a GDP increase of around 1.5 percent, which is a “conservative” evaluation made in talks with the International Monetary Fund.

Cvetković pointed out that by the end of the year the budget deficit would total less than expected four percent of the GDP.

The prime minister underlined that the GDP decrease would amount to less than 3 percent by the end of 2009, which was better than the evaluated 4.5 percent drop.

He also quoted that Romania, for example, was expecting the GDP decrease of 8.6 percent, Croatia 5.2, Hungary 6.7, the Czech Republic 4.3, Slovakia 4.7 percent, and that the drop was even higher in the Baltic countries.

The government's next year priority would be the recovery of economy, reform of the public sector and further improvement of the economy, with a special accent on infrastructure building, Cvetković concluded.