Kuwait's fiscal spending to top $55bn

Kuwait's spending in the 2010/2011 fiscal year will be about KD16 billion ($55.6bn / Dh204.2bn), the finance minister said yesterday , slightly higher than he had previously forecast.

"Around KD16bn," Mustapha Al Shamali told reporters at the parliament, without giving details of the projected deficit for the fiscal year.

Shamali had previously said Kuwait was expected to spend KD12bn-15bnin its 2010-11 budget. Spending for the current 2009-10 fiscal year is envisaged at around KD12bn.

Kuwait, an Opec member and the world's fourth largest oil exporter, had said it will base its 2010-11 budget on an oil price of $43 a barrel.

The new budget includes spending on projects in the government's development plan, which runs until 2014 and aims to decrease the country's dependence on oil. The plan also includes investment on raising oil and natural gas production.

The package should attract more investments into the Gulf Arab state and boost participation of the private sector in government projects.

Kuwait logged a surplus of KD6.32bn in the first eight months of the fiscal year, which starts in April, due to higher oil revenues.

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