The Finance Ministry is estimating that tax revenues for fiscal 2002 will be close to 47 trillion yen, the lowest in 15 years, ministry officials said Friday.

The revenue estimates would be the lowest since fiscal 1987, when tax revenues were 46.8 trillion yen, and are lower than previous projections as the ruling coalition gave up plans to raise taxes on tobacco and "happoshu" low-malt beer, which together would have added tens of billions of yen.

The ministry had previously estimated next year's tax revenues at around 47.6 trillion yen, explaining that tax revenues for the year would be depressed because revenues for this year would also fall short of the original projection made.

This year's estimate is used as the basis for next fiscal year's tax projection.

The ministry had also attributed the reduced estimate to an expected drop of around 2 trillion yen in revenue from taxes on the interest on savings, as the peak maturity period for a huge amount of postal savings is over.

But the ministry was forced to revise next year's estimates downward again because the economy is poised for a further deterioration, as evidenced in gross domestic product data for the July-September quarter, which showed the economy contracting.