South Korea's fiscal deficit rose more than 40 percent on-year during the first five months of 2024 amid weak corporate performances and growing state expenditures, the finance ministry said Thursday.The managed fiscal balance, a key gauge of fiscal health calculated on a stricter term, posted a deficit of 74.4 trillion won (US$53.82 billion) in the January-May period, larger than the shortfall of 52.5 trillion won a year earlier, according to the finance ministry.This year's tally was the second-largest figure ever for any cited period. The shortfall hit an all-time high of 77.9 trillion won in 2020 due to the government's cash handouts for people hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.The total revenue went up by 1.6 trillion won on-year to 258.2 trillion during the January-May period this year, led by the increase in non-tax income.But tax revenue fell 6.3 percent to 151 trillion won due to the sharp fall in the government's collection of corporate taxes on their weak performances.Total expenditures went u p by 23 trillion won on-year to 310.4 trillion won as the government spent more on various welfare programs, according to the ministry.The government's debt reached 1,146.8 trillion won as of end-May, up 17.9 trillion won from a month earlier, the data showed.Source: Yonhap News Agency