Financial results for the three months ended June 30, 2014
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     The Government announced today (July 31) its financial results for the three months ended June 30, 2014.

     Expenditure for the period April to June 2014 amounted to HK$87.1 billion and revenue HK$67.2 billion, resulting in a deficit of HK$19.9 billion.

     A government spokesperson said that the deficit for the period was mainly because some major types of revenue including salaries and profits taxes were mostly received towards the end of a financial year.

     The fiscal reserves stood at HK$735.8 billion as at June 30, 2014.

     More detailed figures are shown in Tables 1 and 2.

TABLE 1.   CONSOLIDATED ACCOUNT (Note 1)

                   Month ended    Three months ended
                  June 30, 2014      June 30, 2014
                  -------------   ------------------
                   HK$ million        HK$ million

Revenue             19,815.0           67,158.9
Expenditure        (29,206.2)         (87,095.8)
                  -------------   ------------------
Deficit             (9,391.2)         (19,936.9)
                  -------------   ------------------

Financing
 Domestic
  Banking Sector     9,386.8           18,931.4
   (Note 2)
  Non-Banking Sector     4.4            1,005.5
 External                -                 -
                  -------------   ------------------
Total                9,391.2           19,936.9
                  -------------   ------------------

Government Debts as at June 30, 2014 (Note 3)
  HK$11,189.4 million
Debts Guaranteed by Government as at June 30, 2014 (Note 4)
  HK$75,107.1 million

TABLE 2.   FISCAL RESERVES

                   Month ended    Three months ended
                  June 30, 2014      June 30, 2014
                  -------------   ------------------
                   HK$ million        HK$ million

Fiscal Reserves      745,171.0        755,716.7
at start of period

Consolidated Deficit  (9,391.2)       (19,936.9)
                  -------------   ------------------

Fiscal Reserves      735,779.8        735,779.8
at end of period
                  -------------   ------------------

Notes:

1. This Account consolidates the General Revenue Account and the following eight funds: Capital Works Reserve Fund, Capital Investment Fund, Civil Service Pension Reserve Fund, Disaster Relief Fund, Innovation and Technology Fund, Land Fund, Loan Fund and Lotteries Fund. It excludes the Bond Fund, the balance of which is not part of the fiscal reserves. The Bond Fund balance as at June 30, 2014 was HK$102,883 million.

2. Includes transactions with the Exchange Fund and resident banks.

3. These were the outstanding institutional notes as at June 30, 2014. Of these notes, repayment of US$1,250 million, equivalent to HK$9,689.4 million as at June 30, 2014, was made on July 31, 2014, and the rest denominated in Hong Kong dollars will mature in July 2019. The outstanding bonds of HK$97,000 million issued under the Government Bond Programme (with proceeds credited to the Bond Fund) are excluded. Of these bonds, HK$10,000 million was repaid on July 28, 2014; HK$26,500 million will mature within the period from August 2014 to June 2015 and the rest within the period from July 2015 to January 2023.

4. Includes guarantees provided under the SME Loan Guarantee Scheme launched in 2001, the Special Loan Guarantee Scheme launched in 2008, the Special Concessionary Measures under the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme launched in 2012 and the commercial loan of the Ocean Park Corporation.

Ends/Thursday, July 31, 2014
Issued at HKT 16:31

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