Slovak FinMin: New fcsts see lower 2007 fiscal gap

...would still leave a space to meet euro adoption criteria.

Deputy Finance Minister Frantisek Palko told Reuters Eurostat, the European Union's statistical service, may still ask to include the highway company in public finances despite leaving it out from a methodology recommendation published on Monday.

Palko said new finance ministry forecasts put the 2007 public finance deficit at 2.7 percent of gross domestic product even when the impact of the state highway company is included.

Palko said the updated forecasts, which the ministry expects to publish later on Tuesday, se the 2007 fiscal deficit at 2.5 percent of GDP without the impact of the highway company.

The ministry had previously estimated inclusion of the highway company in public finances to put the gap near the original 2007 target of 2.9 percent of GDP, which would be just below the 3 percent threshold for euro adoption.

[BRATISLAVA/Reuters/Finance.cz]