MADRID (dpa-AFX) - Spain's budget deficit might have exceeded 8 percent of gross domestic product in 2011, Finance Minister Luis de Guindos said in an interview with Cadena Ser radio on Monday. The target for last year was 6 percent of GDP.
The center-right Popular Party government, which came to power in November, aims to bring down the deficit to 4.4 percent of GDP this year. The government had announced on Friday that the country's deficit was around 8 percent in 2011.
The government led by Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy announced EUR 8.9 billion spending cuts on Friday. The austerity package includes an increase in tax on capital gains and also income tax. The government plans to freeze public sector pay for another year.
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