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本帖最后由 爱城闲人 于 2014-12-9 20:36 编辑 & r7 W+ p! Y/ L% e5 i6 m4 h
& k( U7 E: e' _9 [+ Z: kPremier Says Low Oil Prices Could Leave Hole in Provincial Budget$ Z0 f% ~/ R! K! g' M; m
Tuesday, December 09, 2014 - Economy, Infrastructure, Oil
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5 X+ q" R( ]! y+ XThe price of oil hovered around $63 US/barrel Tuesday after one of its worst days in years Tuesday.2 V$ g; X3 M+ ~, c1 M8 c) r
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And Premier Jim Prentice says low prices could leave a $7 billion hole in the province’s budget.6 z& m0 s. q$ H
2 Z7 D$ j9 {& R8 A/ ^8 yPrentice gave his “State of the Province” speech to the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce Tuesday.
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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.”# _7 o( _ z0 }7 E9 c. c
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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.
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- a3 F) ^( Z6 s* J2 P6 APrentice 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.( V/ Y+ F+ N1 f5 i: J: f
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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.) B* h3 i. _' S
. s3 T+ y: e4 N1 i* Z2 m) `3 f2 Y9 STuesday’s comments come days after a Morgan Stanley report said crude oil prices could drop to $43 US/barrel in 2015 before rebounding.; d8 O5 a( Y' d: W3 p8 y& ?
/ }0 n4 J+ I' |Last year’s provincial budget was based on a forecasted price of $95 US/barrel.
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Prentice says future budgets will rely on much more conservative price estimates.. N0 t9 I& U$ U) V
2 }6 y7 u/ q0 Y8 v% ?( j“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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9 Z" p1 E# j/ u& {; o/ N+ ~' mPrentice also says the government is not considering a provincial sales tax to cover possible shortfalls from low oil prices./ n! {, M: P3 {
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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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