Greek Jan-June primary budget surplus at 382mn euros, beats target

ATHENS: Greece's central government achieved a primary budget surplus of 382 million euros  ($430.44 million) in the first half of the year, well above its target, thanks to higher revenues, finance ministry data showed on Monday.

The government was projecting a primary budget deficit - which excludes debt-servicing costs - of 1.57 billion euros for the January-June period, meaning the surplus outperformed the target by 1.95 billion euros.

The central government surplus excludes the budgets of social security funds and local administration. It differs from the figure monitored by Greece's foreign lenders but does indicate the state of the country's finances.

Net tax revenue came in at 23.4 billion euros -- 1.9 billion euros above target. Spending reached 26.1 billion euros -- 191 million euros below target.

The government projects a primary budget surplus of 3.6 percent of economic output this year, according to its 2019 budget.

The post-bailout target set by Greece's lenders is for a primary surplus of 3.5 percent of GDP.