The Irish government recorded a deficit of 1.4 billion euros (1.6 billion U.S. dollars) in the first quarter of 2017, representing an improvement from the 1.8-billion-euro deficit recorded in the first quarter of 2016, according to official figures on Wednesday.
The figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) showed that in the first quarter of 2017, government revenue amounted to 16.9 billion euros, up from 16.2 billion euros in first quarter of 2016. This increase was driven by taxes, social contributions and investment income, the CSO said.
It said government expenditure for the first quarter of 2017 was 18.3 billion euros, reflecting an increase of 0.2 billion euros on the same period last year.
The CSO figures showed general government gross debt was 208.2 billion euros (74.3 percent of GDP) at the end of the first quarter of 2017. This compares with a debt level of 200.6 billion euros (72.8 percent of GDP) at the end of the fourth quarter of 2016.
The rise in the nominal debt level in the first quarter of 2017 is due primarily to the increased issuance of both short and long-term government bonds, the CSO said.
At the end of the first quarter of 2017, general government net debt was 176.6 billion euros (63 percent of GDP), it said.
This is a worsening on the net debt level of a year earlier which stood at 173.9 billion euros, the CSO said, adding that this is mainly due to a combination of a reduction in debt instrument assets and an increase in the corresponding liabilities over this period.
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