ArmInfo. The budget deficit of Armenia in January-December 2020 amounted to 333.9 billion drams ($ 639 million), having jumped 5.2 times on an annualized basis, against a 39.3% decline in 2019 and a 60.5% decline in 2018. According to the RA Statistical Committee, the budget revenues of Armenia slowed down the annual growth from 16.3% to stagnant 0.1%, while the growth of expenditures accelerated from 12.2% to 16.7%, amounting to 1.560 trillion, respectively. and 1.894 trillion. drams ($ 2.99 billion and $ 3.6 billion, respectively).
In the structure of income, the share of taxes and duties decreased in 2020 from 94% to 89%, in absolute terms, decreasing by 5.4% to 1.385 trillion. drams (against 16.4% growth in 2019).
In particular, receipts from all taxes reversed the dynamics from growth to decline, with the exception of targeted social payments, for which receipts accelerated growth from 7.5% to 32.6%, amounting to AMD 24.8 billion. The most significant decline was recorded in income from income tax - by 36.4% (against 37.5% growth in 2019) - to 148.8 billion drams, followed by the rate of decline followed by customs duties and state duties - by 28.3% and 27.1% - 68.3 billion and 33.4 billion drams (against an increase of 18.6% and 21.1% in 2019). A less noticeable deterioration in the trend was recorded in terms of income: from payments for the use of natural resources and preservation of the environment - from 17.5% growth to 16.7% decline to 53.1 billion drams; from turnover tax - from 48.4% growth to 15.9% decline to 26.6 billion; from excise tax - from 27.2% growth by 10.9% decline to 123.6 billion; from value added tax - from 15.6% growth by 6.9% decline to 471.6 billion; from income tax - from 23.6% growth to 6.6% decline - to 411.5 billion.
Against this background, the structure of budget expenditures is growing in all items, except for the purchase of services and goods (from 23.7% growth by 6.7% decline to AMD 179.2 billion) and interest payments on external debt (from 17 % growth by 11.3% decline - to 77.9 billion drams). In an upward trend, with an acceleration of rates, expenses on: subsidies - from 1.9% to 5% (119.1 billion drams); grants - from 18.7% to 24.6% (186.9 billion); benefits and pensions - from 6.5% to 23.4% (559.1 billion). Slowed down the annual growth of expenses on: salaries - from 13% to 2% (171.6 billion drams); for non-financial assets - from 26% to 21.2% (226.1 billion); interest payments on state debt - from 13.3% to 4.6% (AMD 164.8 billion).
Note that the calculated AMD exchange rate as of December 31, 2020 was 522.59 AMD / $ 1, and in January-December, the average calculated AMD exchange rate was 489.01 AMD / $ 1.
