Marcos administration will stick to fiscal deficit target, Finance Secretary Frederick D. Go said, while analysts warned it could be more challenging amid weak revenue collection expectations.
Asked whether the government had changed the deficit ceiling, Mr Go told reporters on Friday that there had been no change in the target.
The government set the deficit ceiling for 2026 at P1.65 trillion, or 5.3% of GDP. For 2027, the deficit ceiling was set at P1.6 trillion or 4.8% of GDP, followed by 2028 at P1.55 trillion or 4.3% of GDP.
The Development Budget Coordination Committee has cut the targets of revenue generating agencies this year, potentially hurting fiscal consolidation efforts.
The revenue collection target of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) was reduced by 4.14% this year to P3.431 trillion, while the Bureau of Customs (BOC) The target was reduced by 1.07% to P1.003 trillion.
BTR's cash operations report, covering December and full year financial year Deficit figures will be released on March 3.
In the first 11 months, the budget deficit grew to P1.26 trillion, about 80.92% of the P1.56-trillion full-year 2025 target.
Meanwhile, analysts warned that weak revenue collections from the BIR and BOC could make it more divergentFideal for administration To keep the 2026 deficit within the target.
Jonathan L. Reyes, a senior consultant at Tacundong & Company. Ravelas said this becomes more divergent given the reduction of about P160 billion in the collection targets of the BIR and BOC.FEfforts to bring the deficit down to 5.3% of GDP.
“It basically means the government has a lower revenue limit, so if spending is not curbed or revenues are not compensated, the deficit will increase,” he said in a message on Viber. sunday.
Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said the government's 5.3% fiscal deficit target for 2026 will be “challenging to achieve” amid lower projected revenue collections.
Pressures such as slower economic activity, geopolitical risks and local political noise could reduce tax receipts and widen the budget gap, he said in a Viber message over the weekend.
Privatization
Meanwhile, Mr Go said he has directed the privatization and managementFWill keep an eye on government assets based on ICE (PMO) What is more “realistic” to sell.
“I told them to come back to me and arrange it in a way that they felt was more realistic,” the finance chief said.
Based on the 2026 expenditure budget and sources of financing, revenues from the government's privatization program are expected to reach P101 billion in 2026, up from P5 billion last year. — Aubrey Rose A. innocente