State budget for 2015 adopted with deficit of UAH 63.67 bln

The deficit of Ukraine's state budget for 2015 has been approved in the amount of UAH 63.67 billion (not including the deficit of Naftogaz Ukrainy), which is 7.1% lower than planned for this year and is 3.7% of the government-projected GDP.

According to the text of the law on the state budget for 2015, which was published in the parliament's Holos Ukrainy newspaper on December 31, state budget revenues this year are to be increased by 26% compared with 2014, to UAH 475.94 billion, whereas budget expenditures are to be raised by 19.5%, to UAH 527.89 billion.

In particular, the document foresees the transfer by the National Bank of Ukraine of UAH 65.4 billion to the state budget by May 11, whereas last year the central bank transferred only UAH 22.8 billion.

The maximum amount of public debt for 2015 was set at UAH 1.176 trillion (68.3% of GDP), or 45.7% higher than planned in 2014.

These figures are only slightly different from those in the government draft that was tabled in parliament on December 23.

At the same time, the amount of state guarantees in the state budget was increased to UAH 25 billion from UAH 18 billion in the draft.