The Government announced today (May 31) its financial results for April 2024, the first month of the current financial year.
Expenditure for the first month amounted to HK$61.9 billion and revenue HK$34.2 billion, resulting in a deficit of HK$27.7 billion.
A Government spokesperson said that the deficit in April was mainly due to the fact that some major types of revenue including salaries and profits taxes are mostly received towards the end of a financial year.
The fiscal reserves stood at HK$706.9 billion as at April 30, 2024.
Detailed figures are shown in Tables 1 and 2.
TABLE 1. CONSOLIDATED ACCOUNT (Note 1)
| Month ended April 30, 2024 HK$ million |
|
| Revenue | 34,273.5 |
| Expenditure | (61,934.9) |
| Deficit | (27,661.4) |
| Financing | |
| Domestic | |
| Banking Sector (Note 2) | 25,949.6 |
| Non-Banking Sector | 1,711.8 |
| External | – |
| Total | 27,661.4 |
Government Debts as at April 30, 2024 (Note 3)
HK$192,298 million
Debts Guaranteed by Government as at April 30, 2024 (Note 4)
HK$144,518 million
TABLE 2. FISCAL RESERVES
| Month ended April 30, 2024 HK$ million |
|
| Fiscal Reserves at start of period | 734,585.4 |
| Consolidated Deficit | (27,661.4) |
| Fiscal Reserves at end of period (Note 5) | 706,924.0 |
Notes:
1. This Account consolidates the General Revenue Account and the following eight Funds: Capital Works Reserve Fund, Capital Investment Fund, Civil Service Pension Reserve Fund, Disaster Relief Fund, Innovation and Technology Fund, Land Fund, Loan Fund and Lotteries Fund. It excludes the Bond Fund, the balance of which is not part of the fiscal reserves. The Bond Fund balance as at April 30, 2024, was HK$283,317 million.
2. Includes transactions with the Exchange Fund and resident banks.
3. These were the Green Bonds (equivalent to HK$192,298 million as at April 30, 2024) issued under the Government Green Bond Programme. They were denominated in US dollars (US$9,950 million with maturity from May 2024 to January 2053), euros (4,580 million euros with maturity from January 2025 to November 2041), Renminbi (RMB31,500 million with maturity from November 2024 to June 2033) and Hong Kong dollars (HK$42,000 million with maturity from May 2025 to October 2026). They do not include the outstanding bonds with nominal value of HK$237,026 million and alternative bonds with nominal value of US$1,000 million (equivalent to HK$7,826 million as at April 30, 2024) issued under the Government Bond Programme (with proceeds credited to the Bond Fund). Of these bonds under the Government Bond Programme (including Silver Bonds with nominal value of HK$124,526 million, which may be redeemed before maturity upon request from bond holders), bonds with nominal value of HK$1,500 million were repaid upon maturity on May 20, 2024; bonds with nominal value of HK$67,421 million will mature within the period from June 2024 to April 2025 and the rest within the period from May 2025 to May 2042.
4. Includes guarantees provided under the SME Loan Guarantee Scheme launched in 2001, the Special Loan Guarantee Scheme launched in 2008, the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme launched in 2012, Loan Guarantee Scheme for Cross-boundary Passenger Transport Trade, Loan Guarantee Scheme for Battery Electric Taxis and Loan Guarantee Scheme for Travel Sector launched in 2023, and a commercial loan of the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation.
5. Includes HK$364,974 million, being the balance of the Land Fund held in the name of "Future Fund", for long-term investments up to December 31, 2030. The Future Fund also includes HK$4,800 million, being one-third of the actual surplus in 2015-16 as top-up.
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