Fiscal surplus plummets 46.4 pct in February

The city’s fiscal surplus plunged in the first two months of this year, amounting to MOP8.55 billion, in the wake of continuous declines in gaming taxes.
The latest update on the central account by the Financial Services Bureau (DSF) reveals that the fiscal surplus registered in the MSAR at the end of February had dropped by 46.4 per cent year-on-year compared to the MOP15.96 billion Macau had generated in the first two months of 2015.
The fall in fiscal surplus resulted from a decrease in revenues of about 21.7 per cent year-on-year, amounting to MOP15.93 billion.
Gaming taxes, accounting for 84.2 per cent of total revenues, dropped 20.9 per cent year-on-year during the first two months of the year, amounting to MOP13.41 billion.
Other direct taxes, meanwhile, decreased by 5.5 per cent, reaching MOP718.5 million, compared to the same period of last year. In addition, indirect taxes slumped 37 per cent year-on-year, amounting to MOP387.7 million.
Moreover, the accumulative expenditure of the government during the first two months increased by 40.42 per cent year-on-year, amounting to MOP7.37 billion.