07.04.202012:16:00UTC+00Sweden Budget Deficit Exceeds Estimate In March: Debt Office

Sweden's budget deficit far exceeded the government's forecast in March, data from the Swedish National Debt Office said Tuesday.

The central government payments resulted in a deficit of SEK 42.1 billion in March compared to debt office's forecast of SEK 12.0 billion. The office cited foreign currency loans to the Riksbank and loans to Swedish Export Credit Corporation as reasons for the deviation from the estimate.

For the twelve-month period up to the end of March, central government payments resulted in a surplus of SEK 64.0 billion, data showed.

However, the economic downturn due to the outbreak of covid-19 is expected to have a clearer impact on the central government's budget balance as of April.

The office said economic measures taken to mitigate the effects of coronavirus will have impact on the budget balance. In addition, income for companies and employees will be lower than previous forecasted as a result of the economic downturn, the office added.