Reuters - 48 minutes ago
MANILA, March 9 - The Philippines' main tax agency surpassed its revenue goal for the second month in a row in February, the agency's chief said on Tuesday.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue , which accounts for around two-thirds of state revenue, collected 48.3 billion pesos in February, slightly ahead of its target of 48.2 billion pesos, BIR Commissioner Joel Tan-Torres told reporters, citing preliminary data.
The figure could still increase once the agency receives all collection reports coming from its various provincial offices, he said.
The bureau was earlier estimated to have exceeded its January collection goal of 56 billion pesos by 10 percent, according to Treasury documents. The government has yet to announce official January fiscal data.
The Philippines has had difficulty battling widespread corruption and tax evasion to improve tax collections and bridge a yawning budget deficit, which reached a record 298.5 billion pesos, or 3.9 percent of GDP, in 2009.
It expects a budget deficit of 293 billion pesos this year, or 3.5 percent of GDP, but analysts believe Manila will end the year with another record shortfall due to spending related to national elections in May and typhoon rehabilitation.
(Reporting by Monicca Egoy; Editing by Rosemarie Francisco)
