July 13, 2007

Sales tax revenues show surprising drop

A $300 million shortfall in June tax revenues came from a surprising dip in sales tax receipts. Most of the focus is usually on the income tax, which outperformed expectations in June, or the bank and corporate tax, which also held its own. But the sales tax, which had met expectations for 11 consecutive months, suddenly slid, down 7 percent from June of 2006 and 10 percent below projections for the month. Department of Finance revenue-watchers say it is too soon to tell whether this was a reporting blip, a one-time decline or a sign of deeper weakness in the economy.

You can read the monthly report here.

Posted by dweintraub on July 13, 2007 10:50 AM