Spain to cut 2014 net debt issuance on higher tax revenue

MADRID (Reuters) - Higher than expected tax receipts and falling financing costs will allow Spain to sharply cut net debt issuance for 2014 from an estimated 65 billion euros (53 billion pounds), Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said on Wednesday.

Spain is due to present an update of its three-year budget plans to the European Union next week, which will include debt and growth forecasts.

The debt issuance target for 2014 would be "substantially and significantly" lowered, de Guindos told an economic event in Madrid.

Strong recent economic data could prompt the government to raise its 2014 economic growth forecast of 1 percent, which is already higher than the initial estimate of 0.7 percent.

The Bank of Spain expects gross domestic product (GDP) to grow by 1.2 percent this year and 1.7 percent in 2015.

De Guindos said he expected average GDP growth of 1.5 percent in 2014 and 2015 after two years of economic contraction.

"The important thing here is not the exact decimal point ... but that with two years of average growth of 1.5 percent, our outlook is going to be different," de Guindos said.

Spain has already raised 39 percent of this year's gross medium and long-term debt target of 133 billion euros, which includes redemptions of existing debt.

(Reporting by Andres Gonzalez; Writing by Tracy Rucinski; Editing by John Stonestreet)