Last year's budget deficit increases further

The government reported last week a general government deficit equal to 6 per cent of the GDP for 2004 to Eurostat, Világgazdaság has learned. This emerges only some days after the Ministry of Finance acknowledged a higher than previously known deficit of 5.8 per cent. In the complicated system of Hungary''s general government deficits,

these numbers are calculated in an accrual basis, according to ESA methodology, and without correction mechanisms permitted due to the pension reforms. With these latter corrections, the deficit amounted to 4.9 per cent last year.