*********************************************************
The Government announced today (October 30) its financial results for the six months ended September 30, 2015.
Expenditure for the period April to September 2015 amounted to HK$210.6 billion and revenue HK$142.7 billion, resulting in a cumulative year-to-date deficit of HK$67.9 billion.
A government spokesperson said that the cumulative year-to-date 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$760.6 billion as at September 30, 2015.
More detailed figures are shown in Tables 1 and 2.
TABLE 1. CONSOLIDATED ACCOUNT (Note 1)
Month ended Six months ended
September 30, 2015 September 30, 2015
------------------ ------------------
HK$ million HK$ million
Revenue 17,076.5 142,704.7
Expenditure (35,192.4) (210,627.1)
------------- ------------------
Deficit (18,115.9) (67,922.4)
------------- ------------------
Financing
Domestic
Banking Sector 18,379.2 67,112.9
(Note 2)
Non-Banking Sector (263.3) 809.5
External - -
------------- ----------------
Total 18,115.9 67,922.4
------------- ----------------
Government Debts as at September 30, 2015 (Note 3)
HK$1,500 million
Debts Guaranteed by Government as at September 30, 2015 (Note 4)
HK$45,931.6 million
TABLE 2. FISCAL RESERVES
Month ended Six months ended
September 30, 2015 September 30, 2015
------------------ ------------------
HK$ million HK$ million
Fiscal Reserves 778,707.6 828,514.1
at start of period
Consolidated Deficit (18,115.9) (67,922.4)
------------- -----------------
Fiscal Reserves 760,591.7 760,591.7
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 September 30, 2015, was HK$125,441 million.
2. Includes transactions with the Exchange Fund and resident banks.
3. These were the outstanding institutional notes as at September 30, 2015, which were denominated in Hong Kong dollars with maturity in July 2019. They do not include the outstanding bonds with nominal value of HK$103,200 million and alternative bonds with nominal value of US$2,000 million (equivalent to HK$15,501 million as at September 30, 2015) issued under the Government Bond Programme (with proceeds credited to the Bond Fund). Of these bonds under the Government Bond Programme, bonds with nominal value of HK$28,000 million will mature within the period from October 2015 to September 2016 and the rest within the period from October 2016 to July 2030.
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, a commercial loan of the Ocean Park Corporation and a commercial loan of the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation.
Ends/Friday, October 30, 2015
Issued at HKT 16:30
NNNN
