Latvian budget revenue grows 5.6 percent in H1

During the first half of 2016, Latvia's budget revenue grew by 5.6 percent or 203.2 million euros (223.5 million U.S. dollars) against the first half of last year, Dace Peleka, acting head of State Revenue Service, said at a news conference Wednesday.

Latvia's tax revenue in the first half of this year totaled to 3.644 billion euros. This was 0.6 percent above target, which had been set at 3.624 billion euros, Peleka said.

In the first six months of 2015, Latvia's tax revenue totaled 3.436 billion euros.

Meanwhile, non-tax revenue came to 215.12 million euros in the first six months of 2016, falling 16.1 percent short of the target, which was 256.54 million euros. In the first half of last year, non-tax revenue in the Latvian budget reached 220.58 million euros.

Peleka said that tax payments had dropped at the steepest rate in the public sector, which in the first half of this year received significantly less construction services than a year earlier.

Also, revenues from customs duties fell as the value of imports from some countries plummeted in the first half of 2016. In monetary terms, imports decreased by 44 percent from South Korea, 40 percent from Belarus, 14 percent from China and 11 percent from Russia.

The acting director-general, however, voiced confidence that the budget revenue target will be met this year. Endit