The Slovak 1998 state budget showed a deficit of 8.653 billion Slovak crowns ($247.9 million) at the end of August, down from 8.937 billion crowns at the end of July, the Finance Ministry said on September 2. Revenues for January to August rose to 116.2 billion crowns from 103.6 the month before, while expenses rose more modestly, from 112.5 billion crowns to 124.8 billion. The Finance Ministry changed the way it states the budget balance at the beginning of 1998 to exclude payments of the state debt principal. The ministry said it was not immediately able to give comparatives for the first eight months of 1997 due to the change in methodology.
