Irish Jan-April tax revenues up 31% year-on-year

DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland collected 31% more tax in the first four months of the year than the same period in 2021 following a sharp jump in income tax receipts in April, the finance ministry said on Wednesday.

After collecting far more tax in 2021 than any previous year after the economy weathered one of Europe's toughest lockdowns, the finance ministry estimated last month that tax revenues would rise by a further 11% this year.

It also forecast that the budget deficit would narrow at a faster than expected rate to 0.8% of gross national income this year and Wednesday's data showed that an exchequer deficit of 1.1 billion euros was recorded at the end of April.

(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Toby Chopra)