The 2024 State Budget Deficit Is Made Low To Anticipate The Surge In Debt Interests

Illustration (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The government through the Minister of Finance (Menkeu) Sri Mulyani said that the 2024 State Revenue and Expenditure Budget deficit (APBN) was designed to be lower than the 2023 period.

According to him, in the 2024 RAPBN, the budget deficit is set at IDR 522.8 trillion. This figure is equivalent to 2.29 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Meanwhile, for this year, the deficit is targeted at IDR 598.2 trillion or 2.84 percent of GDP.

"The deficit is maintained so that we can face and anticipate bad situations from a global perspective," he said at a press conference on the age of submitting the government's Financial Note to the DPR, quoted Friday, August 18.

In detail, the Minister of Finance explained that the potential for external pressure is still quite strong next year. The reason is, inflation rates in developed countries have not dropped as expected.

"This is also to anticipate global interest rates and inflation that have soared so that the cost of funds (funds from financing/debt) is also high," he said.

Based on the sloping draft fiscal deficit, the 2024 State Budget recorded a primary balance of only minus IDR 25.5 trillion. This amount decreased significantly from 2023 which amounted to IDR 156.8 trillion.

Our personal balance is almost close to balance, which is only minus Rp. 25.5 trillion. This already accommodates various needs according to the direction of the President. We hope that a number of National Priority Programs (PSN) can be completed," said the Minister of Finance.

To note, the 2024 RAPBN deficit of Rp522.8 trillion was formed from a larger state expenditure plan of Rp3,304.1 trillion compared to the expenditure side of Rp2,781.3 trillion.

Meanwhile, the amount of government debt until the first semester of 2023 was IDR 7,805.19 trillion or the equivalent of 37.93 percent of GDP. Just so you know, in the 2023 State Budget Law, it is stated that this year's debt interest payment reached IDR 441.4 trillion.