New Brunswick has gone from a forecasted deficit of nearly $192 million to a surplus of $67 million for the 2017-18 fiscal year.
The Liberal government released the audited financial statements for the fiscal year ending March 31 on Tuesday.
It says revenue was up by $150 million, largely due to corporate income taxes, and expenses were down by $109 million due to lower-than-expected expenses in central government, debt servicing costs and economic development.
“For the third year in a row, our economy is growing at a rate faster than predicted by private sector economists,” Finance Minister Cathy Rogers said in a statement.
“While we continue to forecast modest deficits over the next few years, these will be on average 1.3 per cent of expenditures based on our multi-year plan.”
The statements were independently audited by Auditor General Kim MacPherson and released just two days before the provincial election campaign officially begins.
(File photo)
