The consolidated budget deficit came to 17.9 billion kuna, or 4.9% of the country's GDP, when measured by the national methodology, Finance Minister Zdravko Maric, said on Thursday, while presenting a report on the H1 budget execution.

In the first half of 2020, the budget revenues dropped 7.2% to HRK 60.4 billion, and the tax revenues declined by 13.6% to HRK 32 billion, the minister said.

The total budget expenditures increased by 10.1 billion kuna, or by 15.2% to HRK 77.1 billion. As a result, the H1 2020 budget gap is HRK 16.7 billion.

If the extra-budgetary users and local authorities’ financial situation are added, the budget deficit is HRK 17.9 billion, which makes up 4.9% of Gross Domestic Product.

The biggest reason for this gap is an increase in outlays for assistance schemes, such as the job retention scheme, and HRK 6.7 billion kuna has been set aside for that purpose, Maric said.

The costs of the pension indexation is higher by 740 million kuna on the year. The H1 GDP contracted by 7.8% on the year in real terms. At the same time, the inflation rate was 0.5%, industrial production fell by 6.4%, whereas the construction work volume index increased 3.1%.

The overnight stays generated by tourists plunged by 77.1% in H1.

The average number of unemployed people in the first half of 2020 was 148,000 up by 8%.

(€1= HRK 7.5)