JAKARTA :Indonesia's unaudited budget deficit for 2024 was smaller than the government's earlier estimate, official data showed on Monday, providing a buffer for fiscal needs in 2025 after authorities cancelled a planned tax hike. Southeast Asia's largest economy closed 2024 with a budget gap of 507.8 trillion rupiah ($31.38 billion), or 2.29 per cent of GDP, smaller than an earlier estimate of 2.7 per cent of GDP, but wider than 2023's gap of 1.61 per cent of GDP. By law, the government must