Sri Lanka plans 8.0-pct deficit budget for 2010

June 29, 2010 (LBO) - Sri Lanka is planning a budget with a deficit of 8.0 of gross domestic product or 438.3 billion rupees in 2010 compared with 9.9 percent or 476.3 billion rupees in 2009 while there would be a revenue deficit of 2.0 percent or 110.5 billion rupees. The government was planning to increase tax revenues from 699.6 billion rupees to 817 billion rupees.

Deputy finance minister Sarath Amunugama told parliament that the government would keep up public investments.

Public investments of 361 billion rupees or 6.6 percent of GDP were planned. This was up from 330 billion rupees in 2009, though as a proportion of GDP it was slightly lower at 6.6 percent.

The government was planning to borrow 315.

3 billion rupees from domestic markets (392 billion rupees in 2009) and foreign borrowing would go up to 123.5 billion rupees in 2010 up from 83.

8 billion in 2009.