2011 budget deficit estimated at P140B - P170B, says DBM  

The Aquino administration posted a budget deficit between P140 billion and P170 billion, preliminary estimates by the Department of Budget and Management showed.   The numbers compare with the revised deficit ceiling of P260 billion.   “It’s estimated around P140 to P170 billion,” Budget and Management Undersecretary Laura Pascua said Wednesday.   “It can still be higher because of spending. This is only preliminary,” Pascua noted.   The final figures will be announced by the Department of Finance late this month at the earliest   Finance Department records showed that the budget deficit was P96.254 billion in the 11 months to November — the latest data available.   Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima told reporters Wednesday the 2011 deficit will be above P100 billion but below P300 billion. “It’s anywhere in between,” he said. — VS, GMA News