MNI 5 Things: UK PSNF Continues to Undershoot Year-ago Levels

By Laurie Laird, Jamie Satchi and Jai Lakhani

     LONDON (MNI) - The following are the key points from the public sector

borrowing data published on Friday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

     - Year-to-date borrowing continues to fall precipitously from the 11-year

low recorded in the 2017/18 financial year, with the April-June outturn down

24.4% over the same period a year earlier.

     - Over the month of June, borrowing slipped to Stg5.4 billion from Stg6.2

billion a year earlier, helped by a readjustment of EU budget payments, which

flattered the government's fiscal position by Stg500 million in comparison with

the same month of 2017.

     - Following a rebound in consumer spending in recent months -- retail sales

jumped by 2.1%q/q in Q2 -- value-added tax receipts surged by 4.0%y/y to Stg11.9

billion in June. VAT calculations are based in part on HMRC forecasts.

     - Consistent with sluggish earnings growth reported earlier this week,

income tax receipts over the first three months of the fiscal year were revised

down by stg0.5 billion.

     - The reduction in government borrowing is running well ahead of the OBR's

forecast of a 6% decline over the full fiscal year. However, the OBR sounded

ominous warnings earlier this week of the potential damage to government

finances of unfunded spending pledges to the NHS. An ONS official had no

information about the timing of that promised spending.

--MNI London Bureau; tel: +44 203-586-2225; email: les.commons@marketnews.com

--MNI London Bureau; +44 207-862-7489; email: ukeditorial@marketnews.com

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