 鲜花( 1)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
本帖最后由 爱城闲人 于 2014-12-9 20:36 编辑 % G0 `9 V" w7 u# K6 j# O, x
2 e. s3 z/ \7 k5 e fPremier Says Low Oil Prices Could Leave Hole in Provincial Budget
. ~; |* \- Q$ N& k. ?. u4 uTuesday, December 09, 2014 - Economy, Infrastructure, Oil
5 d% q/ {' |# I# G3 {/ x' B: l
, u" |& s+ H* f) {6 oThe price of oil hovered around $63 US/barrel Tuesday after one of its worst days in years Tuesday.! S# ^2 K `7 u4 y
0 X7 g% S$ p( k( w0 o! w
And Premier Jim Prentice says low prices could leave a $7 billion hole in the province’s budget.
4 Y+ i9 i$ b* [ c7 j0 v1 \( B
Prentice gave his “State of the Province” speech to the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce Tuesday." L5 C# ?$ C, g, v- f3 W( Y5 C
1 n/ R3 g$ Y( I, w& |Two 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.”
$ d( \8 a7 z2 X- d. ^- R3 Y" h4 J; S [+ u, E
Now, with prices lower than $65 US/barrel, Prentice says low prices could leave a $6-$7 billion hole in Alberta’s $40 billion budget.9 v5 V5 ] y3 K6 ]" z4 `
' H H o1 [7 H7 w# R$ |# m
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.
8 g. K( a' r4 [0 t# O5 e' P& r9 R7 _) I4 e& S) A# o5 [
“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.; |+ o% ?* a4 e" F l
% i6 K0 H b# S d
Tuesday’s comments come days after a Morgan Stanley report said crude oil prices could drop to $43 US/barrel in 2015 before rebounding.; G4 t. S% l- y* w: j% C
" ~; o; k. D7 t; M8 W# fLast year’s provincial budget was based on a forecasted price of $95 US/barrel.
) Y! ?2 i5 W) A8 x# F
% P8 S9 [0 @* k$ i9 N+ O0 fPrentice says future budgets will rely on much more conservative price estimates.
' A* q8 g# I; ^- o1 A3 Z* y: f+ e8 `* @- p3 c8 G0 A: b# c
“In the long-term, a budget that is tied to to volatile energy prices year-in, year-out represents a significant risk.”
G/ n. B' Z/ g" P& w8 f9 E! e( r" t8 y. c! P( Y! `
Prentice also says the government is not considering a provincial sales tax to cover possible shortfalls from low oil prices.; ?! W3 R9 b" W i" A! z2 c* S
|
|
楼主: 辽宁好汉
狗仔卡
发表于 2014-12-9 15:59
) O/ L7 y9 V3 b4 c. r
显身卡
