Fiscal deficit, core sector boost for Modi govt ahead of RBI policy review

The Centre’s fiscal deficit for the April-June 2018 quarter came in at Rs 4.29 trillion, or 68.7 per cent of the 2018-19 budgeted estimate of 6.24 trillion, the official data released on Tuesday showed. This compares favourably to the fiscal deficit for the same period last year, primarily due to lower administrative expenditure and non-tax revenue.

The fiscal deficit was at 80.8 per cent of 2017-18 budgeted estimates in the April-June quarter of the last fiscal.

“The fiscal deficit for Q1 FY2019 recorded a mild year-on-year decline in absolute terms, with a robust 34 per cent expansion in revenue receipts