Kuwait to post $26 billion surplus over oil windfall
The Daily Star - Business Articles - Kuwait to post $26 billion surplus over oil windfall
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Monday, September 05, 2005
KUWAIT: OPEC-member Kuwait is expected to post a surplus of up to $26 billion in the current fiscal year which ends in March on the back of soaring oil prices, a local economic report forecast on Saturday. National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), the largest bank in the emirate, said in its latest economic report that the Gulf state's revenues would range between $47 billion and $50 billion, depending on the price of crude.
Prices of oil exceeded $70 a barrel last week in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina but eventually dropped to $67.67 on Friday trading.
As of Saturday, more than 88 percent of daily Gulf crude production was shut down and nearly 79 percent of natural gas output was halted. That was an improvement on Thursday's 91 percent for crude and 83 for gas.
The U.S. Energy Department said on Saturday that one refinery in Louisiana was restarting but eight others in the area remained closed down as a result of the hurricane.
Combined, the nine refineries' production capacity is 1.83 million barrels of oil a day - 10 percent of total U.S. output.
NBK report said oil income for the 2005/2006 fiscal year which started on April 1 is forecast to range between $44.8 billion and $47.4 billion.
Non-oil revenues would account for the rest.
This would leave a net budget surplus of between $23 billion and $26 billion, the bank said.
Kuwait's Parliament in June passed the budget for the current fiscal year projecting a deficit of $9 billion.
Expenditure for the year was projected at $24.7 billion against revenues of $15.7 billion.
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Monday, September 05, 2005
KUWAIT: OPEC-member Kuwait is expected to post a surplus of up to $26 billion in the current fiscal year which ends in March on the back of soaring oil prices, a local economic report forecast on Saturday. National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), the largest bank in the emirate, said in its latest economic report that the Gulf state's revenues would range between $47 billion and $50 billion, depending on the price of crude.
Prices of oil exceeded $70 a barrel last week in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina but eventually dropped to $67.67 on Friday trading.
As of Saturday, more than 88 percent of daily Gulf crude production was shut down and nearly 79 percent of natural gas output was halted. That was an improvement on Thursday's 91 percent for crude and 83 for gas.
The U.S. Energy Department said on Saturday that one refinery in Louisiana was restarting but eight others in the area remained closed down as a result of the hurricane.
Combined, the nine refineries' production capacity is 1.83 million barrels of oil a day - 10 percent of total U.S. output.
NBK report said oil income for the 2005/2006 fiscal year which started on April 1 is forecast to range between $44.8 billion and $47.4 billion.
Non-oil revenues would account for the rest.
This would leave a net budget surplus of between $23 billion and $26 billion, the bank said.
Kuwait's Parliament in June passed the budget for the current fiscal year projecting a deficit of $9 billion.
Expenditure for the year was projected at $24.7 billion against revenues of $15.7 billion.
posted by Marcel at 3:35 PM
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