TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, December 21. The Senate of Uzbekistan has approved the state budget for 2024 with a GDP deficit of four percent, Trend reports.
The state economy is predicted to rise by 5.65.8 percent, according to data published by Uzbekistan's Senate.
Consolidated budget receipts are expected to be 375 trillion soums ($30 billion), while expenses will be 427.6 trillion soums ($34.5 billion).
According to the Ministry of Finance's draft budget, the estimated budget deficit is 52.6 trillion soums ($4.4 billion), or four percent of GDP. In comparison, the budget for 2023 was created with a three percent GDP deficit.
Moreover, the majority of tax rates are expected to stay the same. However, there will be an exception, involving a five percent decrease in the excise tax on imported alcohol and tobacco, along with a halving of the tax on the utilization of mineral resources for cement raw materials.
Additionally, in order to boost budgetary income, Uzbekistan is set to focus on addressing the shadow economy.
Meanwhile, as the data by Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Economy and Finance shows, the state budget revenues for eleven months of 2023 amounted to 38.1 trillion soums ($3.1 billion), two-thirds of which came from tax payments.
The increased expenditures, exceeding 50 trillion soums ($4 billion), were mainly the result of an increase in VAT refund by 1.4 trillion soums ($115.1 million).