FG records N420.8bn deficit in 4th quarter 2012 –CBN

 by Idris Ahmed

CBN Governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi

The Federal Government recorded an estimated deficit of N420.81 billion in the fourth quarter of last year, the Central Bank of Nigeria said in its fourth quarter economic report pasted on its website.

It said that while the FG retained N821.24 billion revenue for the quarter, its total expenditure was N1.242 trillion.

The budgeted deficit for the period was N284.05 billion. In the fourth quarter of 2011, government incurred N489.54 billion.

The report said that total federally collected revenue in the fourth quarter of 2012 stood at N2.4 trillion, representing a decline of 0.4 and 13.3 per cent below the budget estimate and the level in the preceding quarter, respectively, but an increase of 101.1 per cent above the receipts in the corresponding period of 2011.

At N1.8 trillion, oil receipts, which constituted 75.6 per cent of the total, exceeded the budget estimate and receipts in the corresponding period of 2011 by 9.91 and 151.2 per cent, respectively, but declined by 5.8 per cent below the receipts in the preceding quarter.

The increase in oil receipts relative to the budget estimate was attributed, largely, to the rise in the receipts from petroleum profit tax, royalties and domestic crude oil and gas sales during the period.

Non-oil receipts, at N589.98 billion, was below the budget estimate and receipts in the preceding quarter by 22.8 and 30.3 per cent, respectively.

The decline in non-oil revenue relative to the preceding quarter’s level, reflected largely the fall in corporate tax, Federal Government independent revenue, as well as customs and excise duties during the review period.

At N13.95 trillion, aggregate banking system credit (net) to the domestic economy, rose by 4.4 per cent at the end of the fourth quarter of 2012, compared with the growth of 0.4 and 37.4 per cent at the end of the preceding quarter and the corresponding quarter of 2011, respectively.

The development relative to the preceding quarter’s level, reflected, largely, the 15.1 and 2.3 per cent increase in claims on the federal government and private sector respectively.

Banking system’s credit (net) to the federal government, at the end of the review quarter rose by 15.1 per cent to N1.3 trillion, in contrast to a decline of 13.3 per cent in the preceding quarter.

The development was accounted for, largely, by the 35.3 per cent increase in banking system’s holdings of federal government securities, particularly FGN Bonds and Treasury Bills.

At the end of fourth quarter 2012, banking system’s credit to the private sector rose by 2.3 per cent to N15.2 trillion, compared with the increase of 1.6 and 27.7 per cent at the end of the preceding quarter and the corresponding period of 2011, respectively.

DailyTrust