Turkey achieves year-end budget deficit target in 2018

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's budget deficit stood at 72.6 billion Turkish liras ($14.8 billion) in 2018, meeting a year-end target under the country's new economic program, the treasury and finance minister said Tuesday.

"We have reached the target of 1.9-percent budget-deficit-to-gross-domestic-product ratio under the new economic program," Berat Albayrak said in a Twitter post.

The country's budget revenues rose 20.2 percent to reach 757.8 billion liras ($154.6 billion) in January-December period, while tax incomes went up 15.8 percent to hit 621.3 billion liras ($126.8 billion), Albayrak noted.

He said budget expenditures rose to 830.5 billion liras ($170 billion), up 22.4 percent during the same period.

"Our strong public financial structure and the fiscal discipline are among Turkey's most important anchors," Albayrak said.