Over the first six months of 2021, the general government budget deficit totaled 9 billion kuna (€1.2 billion), or 2.3 percent of the country's GDP, Finance Minister, Zdravko Maric, said in a government meeting on Thursday.

Commenting on macroeconomic indicators in the first six months, Maric said that in Q1 2021 budget revenues increased 0.7 percent year-on-year, and in Q2 2021 thexy hit a record-high 16.1 percent year-on-year increase .

The average inflation measured by consumer prices was 1.2 percent in H1 2021, and was fueled mainly by higher oil prices. Over the first six months of 2021, budget revenues increased by 22.8 percent to 74.1 billion kuna (€9.9 billion) from H1 2020. Tax revenues also increased, by 16.9 percent, to 37.5 billion kuna (€5 billion).

Maric said that government spending in the same period had increased by 8.9 percent or 6.9 billion kuna (€0.9 billion) to 84 billion kuna (€11.2 billion) compared to the first six months of 2020.

The three key areas which accounted for higher spending were the health care system – including an agreement with drug wholesalers on the settlement of government’s liabilities –  outlays for employees under an agreement with trade unions on higher wages, and the rise in state-funded pensions, Maric said.

(€1 = 7.49 kuna)