The Marshall Islands Ministry of Finance has put a halt to spending on travel and office supplies by all government agencies due to a ballooning deficit.
The secretary of finance, Alfred Alfred Junior, says they are projecting a deficit of 12 million US dollars in the General Fund, if the current spending and revenue levels continue.
The government is only in the second quarter of fiscal year 2011.
Alfred Alfred Junior says after February, the Ministry will do another review of revenue and spending to assess the situation.
The government's annual budget is US$129m.
The General Fund is the government's main account from locally generated revenue, ranging from taxes and fishing fees to income from its ship registry and aid from Taiwan.
