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本帖最后由 爱城闲人 于 2014-12-9 20:36 编辑 0 U# |4 r8 }( x3 j7 B W7 [
' C# G/ m+ \8 H- ~% S' vPremier Says Low Oil Prices Could Leave Hole in Provincial Budget
0 {3 ~" ]1 ]4 L7 W& bTuesday, December 09, 2014 - Economy, Infrastructure, Oil9 {# t; q! s, M; z9 a( E+ o
- P$ e( G/ b$ p4 b" T& y1 UThe price of oil hovered around $63 US/barrel Tuesday after one of its worst days in years Tuesday.
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, m* r. l# x5 F9 D: SAnd Premier Jim Prentice says low prices could leave a $7 billion hole in the province’s budget.. H% m; J j3 p8 T
* m" m- F7 f3 ^" @5 xPrentice gave his “State of the Province” speech to the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce Tuesday.$ H& u: K8 m% L4 M1 ^9 l' j# F1 E
6 j$ [. T0 O$ yTwo weeks ago, the Premier said the government expected oil prices to end the year between $65 US/barrel and $75 US/barrel. At that time he said low prices would have “consequences for all Albertans.”
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Now, with prices lower than $65 US/barrel, Prentice says low prices could leave a $6-$7 billion hole in Alberta’s $40 billion budget.( x& z$ J4 l ~
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Prentice says the government will have to reduce spending if low prices are sustained. He says across-the-board cuts in spending won’t happen, instead Prentice says his government will focus on core services and limit spending below the rate of growth, plus inflation.
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“It is incumbent on us to adjust our expectations and adjust our spending to begin to mitigate these risks for the long-term. And the solution cannot be to simply wait for the next upswing in prices,” he says.0 x2 i/ j! p) N) T- v( w
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Tuesday’s comments come days after a Morgan Stanley report said crude oil prices could drop to $43 US/barrel in 2015 before rebounding.
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Last year’s provincial budget was based on a forecasted price of $95 US/barrel.( Y2 |; V7 L) N
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Prentice says future budgets will rely on much more conservative price estimates.
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' u ?1 X; a8 n- S- S“In the long-term, a budget that is tied to to volatile energy prices year-in, year-out represents a significant risk.”
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# e; x" `) x4 d xPrentice also says the government is not considering a provincial sales tax to cover possible shortfalls from low oil prices.
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楼主: 辽宁好汉
狗仔卡
发表于 2014-12-9 15:59
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