(OTTAWA) The federal government posted a budget surplus of $6.3 billion for the first four months of its 2022-2023 fiscal year.
Posted at 12:08 p.m.
The Ministry of Finance said Friday that the result for the period from April to July compared with a deficit of 47.3 billion for the same four months a year earlier.
In its Monthly Financial Review, the government said revenue for the year so far totaled $143.1 billion, down from $118.5 billion a year ago.
Program spending, excluding net actuarial losses, was nearly $122.2 billion for the year to date, down 20.1% from $152.9 billion. the same period a year earlier. The Department of Finance attributed the decline primarily to a decline in transfer payments to individuals and businesses.
Public debt charges reached $11.2 billion for the period, up $3.4 billion, or 43.3%, from $7.8 billion for the first four months of the previous year.
Net actuarial losses totaled $3.4 billion for the period, down 33% from the $5.1 billion recorded a year earlier.