Tax take continues to fall short, pushing government finances to higher deficit

Tax take continues to fall short, pushing government finances to higher deficit
By Paul McBeth March 11 (BusinessDesk) - The New Zealand government’s operating deficit was wider than expected in the first seven months of the 2014 financial year, with a smaller tax take than forecast and lower than anticipated tobacco excise duty. The Crown’s operating balance before gains and losses (obegal) was a deficit of $1.06 billion in the seven months ended Jan. 31, more than twice the size of the $426 million deficit predicted three months ago, in the Dec. 17 half-year economic and fiscal update. However, the obegal is still t...