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Financial results for the five months ended August 31, 2018
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     The Government announced today (September 28) its financial results for the five months ended August 31, 2018.

     Expenditure for the period April to August 2018 amounted to HK$210.8 billion and revenue HK$144.8 billion, resulting in a cumulative year-to-date deficit of HK$66 billion.

     A government spokesperson said that the cumulative year-to-date deficit for the period was mainly due to the fact that some major types of revenue, including salaries and profits taxes, are mostly received towards the end of a financial year.

     The fiscal reserves stood at HK$1,036.9 billion as at August 31, 2018.

     Detailed figures are shown in Tables 1 and 2.

TABLE 1. CONSOLIDATED ACCOUNT (Note 1)
 
   
Month ended
August 31, 2018
HK$ million
 
Five months ended
August 31, 2018
HK$ million
Revenue 18,429.9 144,743.7
Expenditure (42,031.2) (210,771.6)
     
Deficit (23,601.3) (66,027.9)
                         
Financing    
     Domestic    
        Banking Sector
         (Note 2)
23,580.7 63,446.5
        Non-Banking
         Sector
20.6 2,581.4
      External - -
                         
Total 23,601.3 66,027.9

Government Debts as at August 31, 2018 (Note 3)
    HK$1,500 million
Debts Guaranteed by Government as at August 31, 2018 (Note 4)
    HK$24,187.5 million

TABLE 2. FISCAL RESERVES
 
   
Month ended
August 31, 2018
HK$ million
 
Five months ended
August 31, 2018
HK$ million
Fiscal Reserves
at start of period
1,060,507.1 1,102,933.7
Consolidated Deficit (23,601.3) (66,027.9)
     
Fiscal Reserves
at end of period
(Note 5)
1,036,905.8 1,036,905.8

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 August 31, 2018, was HK$134,494 million.

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

3. These were the outstanding institutional notes as at August 31, 2018, which were denominated in Hong Kong dollars with maturity in July 2019. They do not include the outstanding bonds with nominal value of HK$95,814 million and alternative bonds with nominal value of US$3,000 million (equivalent to HK$23,549 million as at August 31, 2018) issued under the Government Bond Programme (with proceeds credited to the Bond Fund). Of these bonds under the Government Bond Programme (including Silver Bonds with nominal value of HK$5,814 million, which may be redeemed before maturity upon request from bond holders), bonds with nominal value of HK$26,087 million will mature within the period from September 2018 to August 2019 and the rest within the period from September 2019 to March 2032.

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 a commercial loan of the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation.

5. Includes HK$219,730 million being the balance of the Land Fund held in the name of "Future Fund" as from January 1, 2016, for long-term investments initially up to December 31, 2025. As from July 1, 2016, the Future Fund also includes HK$4,800 million, being one-third of the actual surplus in 2015-16 as top-up.
 
Ends/Friday, September 28, 2018
Issued at HKT 16:30
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