Tag: fiscal

Russia Says Ruble Appreciations Poses No Threat to Fiscal Policy

The recent sharp strengthening of the ruble “does not pose a risk to Russia’s fiscal policy,” the finance ministry said on Thursday. The ruble firmed sharply in Moscow trade on Thursday to levels last seen before Russia sent tens of thousands of soldiers to Ukraine. The appreciation of the ruble “impacts oil and gas revenues…


German Fiscal Policy to Stave Off Stagflation: Lindner

BERLIN—The German government will tailor its public spending plans to avoid stagflation in Europe’s biggest economy and keep at bay the risk of sliding into a cycle of rising prices and anemic growth, Finance Minister Christian Lindner said on Tuesday. “The goal of the federal government is to support growth in Germany and mitigate the…


Euro Zone Mulls How to Make Governments Respect EU Fiscal Rules

BRUSSELS—Euro zone finance ministers will start a discussion on Monday on how to change the often-broken EU fiscal rules so that governments actually observe them, a euro zone official said. The European Union’s Stability and Growth Pact is meant to stop governments from borrowing too much in order to safeguard the value of the euro…


Eighty House Republicans Vote With Democrats to Pass Bill Funding Federal Vaccine Database

Eighty House Republicans voted with the Democrats to Tuesday to pass the Immunization Infrastructure Modernization Act, which if passed by the Senate and made into law, would fund a federal vaccination database. The bill, also known as H.R. 550, will grant the federal government the authority to appropriate $400 million in taxpayer dollars to fund “immunization…


US 2021 Fiscal Year Deficit Below Prior Year’s Record, Treasury Says

The U.S. budget deficit totaled $2.772 trillion during fiscal 2021, below the prior year’s record shortfall but still reflecting a second straight year of massive spending to support households and businesses through the coronavirus pandemic, the Treasury Department said on Friday. The United States posted a deficit of $3.132 trillion in fiscal 2020, when the…


Japan’s Aso Urges Joint Monetary, Fiscal Policies to Spur Inflation

TOKYO—Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso called on Tuesday for a combination of monetary and fiscal policies to help boost inflation towards the Bank of Japan’s 2 percent inflation target, saying easy money policy has its limit. “We must utilise both monetary and fiscal policies” to bring inflation to a certain level, Aso told reporters after…


French Fiscal Watchdog Sees Smaller Deficit Than Expected by Government

PARIS—France’s public sector budget deficit is likely to come in smaller than expected this year and any extra tax income should go towards reducing the public debt, the budget oversight panel said on Wednesday. The government is forecasting a budget deficit this year of 8.4 percent of gross domestic product, falling to 4.8 percent next…


2021 Federal Budget Spends Large on Canada’s Credit Card

Commentary The 2021 federal budget released on April 19 solidifies the legacy of the Trudeau government—it pays for spending with the country’s credit card and shows a disregard for the country’s growing debt. As outlined in Budget 2021, Ottawa expects revenues this year (2021/22) to exceed expectations from the economic update released in November 2020 by…