mideast oil exporters ‘face 320bn in deficits’
Last Updated : GMT 09:40:38
Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle
Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle
Last Updated : GMT 09:40:38
Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle

Mideast oil exporters ‘face $320bn in deficits’

Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle

Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicleMideast oil exporters ‘face $320bn in deficits’

Economic growth in these countries bottomed out to around half a percent in 2017.
Dubai - Muslimchronicle

The Middle East’s oil producers are bracing for continued pressure from lower oil prices, with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projecting cumulative budget deficits of $320 billion over the next five years, according to a new report released on Tuesday.
Approximately half of that amount — or $160 billion — will be sustained by energy-rich Gulf Arab nations between 2018 and 2022.
Still, the projection is significantly lower than the shortfall of $350 billion that Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain racked up since 2015, when oil prices plunged to their lowest in years.
The IMF said economic growth in these countries bottomed out to around half a percent in 2017.
A major diplomatic rift between four Arab countries and Qatar underway over the past several months has so far had limited impact on economic growth, though the IMF said the impasse could have an impact on investors’ appetites in the region.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s top oil producers and the Arab region’s biggest economy, is introducing economic and social reforms to wean the country off its reliance on oil for revenue. In a move aimed in part at boosting women’s participation in the economy, Saudi Arabia lifted a longstanding ban on women driving that was seen as a damper on potential economic growth.
Jihad Azour, the IMF’s Mideast and Central Asia department director, said that for the Saudi economy to see a real boost, the decision to allow women to drive has to go hand-in-hand with creating more opportunities for women in the workplace.
“I think the real important element here is more on gradual recognition and taking gradual measures to allow women to participate more into the economy,” he said. “Allowing women to have better access to (the) market, to participate into the economy and create jobs.”
Azour, who spoke with the Associated Press for the launch of the report, said countries in the region must push ahead with structural reforms. The IMF cautions that across the Middle East, growth is below what is needed to “effectively tackle the unemployment challenges” of the region.
Conflicts in Yemen, Libya, Syria and Iraq are also having an impact on the region’s overall economic outlook. In Yemen, for example, inflation shot to nearly 40 percent in 2015 and is projected to be nearly 30 percent next year.
Meanwhile, oil importing countries are benefiting from lower oil prices, but Egypt, for example, is also battling inflation of close to 30 percent.
The IMF has encouraged Mideast oil importers and exporters to reduce spending and find new sources of revenue by introducing new taxes and lifting subsidies.
In the outlook report, the IMF said progress on these efforts has been uneven. Oil exporters such as Iran, the UAE and Qatar have had lower budget deficits in comparison to their GDP than Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Oman. That is in part because Iran, for example, is less dependent on oil revenues than Saudi Arabia.
The IMF’s figures are based on assumed oil prices of about $50 a barrel through the end of this year and next, up from last year’s average of $43. On Friday, Brent crude, the international benchmark oil, rose above $60 for the first time since 2015 as Saudi Arabia signaled it would support extending an agreement by major oil producers to limit output beyond next March.

Source:Arabnews

 

themuslimchronicle
themuslimchronicle

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

mideast oil exporters ‘face 320bn in deficits’ mideast oil exporters ‘face 320bn in deficits’

 



Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle

GMT 06:29 2018 Sunday ,21 January

500 new trainees join US-backed Syria border force

GMT 10:31 2017 Sunday ,20 August

the history of solar eclipses

GMT 16:36 2017 Tuesday ,05 December

Gulf Air launches Bahrain Tourist Visa Service

GMT 03:19 2012 Saturday ,15 September

FREEDOM

GMT 06:56 2014 Friday ,12 September

No winners in Gaza

GMT 22:30 2012 Monday ,16 July

Sudan ruling party says protests \'ridiculous\'

GMT 07:09 2012 Wednesday ,20 June

Sudan and South Sudan border tensions

GMT 12:02 2012 Tuesday ,17 April

What the Living Do

GMT 17:33 2017 Saturday ,25 March

Caceres recalled to Paraguay squad for Brazil clash

GMT 17:18 2017 Tuesday ,19 December

Bahrain weather forecast

GMT 09:35 2017 Sunday ,29 October

Actress Annabella Sciorra accuses Weinstein of rape

GMT 13:43 2017 Thursday ,16 November

People Magazine names Blake Shelton 'sexiest man alive'

GMT 18:10 2017 Monday ,17 April

GCC Secretary-General Condemns Syria Blast

GMT 13:15 2017 Wednesday ,15 February

Inherited the talent to draw on glass

GMT 14:35 2017 Saturday ,25 March

Dar Essalam to Host Two Golf Competitions

GMT 07:22 2016 Saturday ,09 July

Gunfire near presidential palace in South Sudan

GMT 10:42 2017 Wednesday ,16 August

Chinese teen Internet addict dies

GMT 13:51 2017 Thursday ,21 September

King Salman meets with former Turkish president

GMT 09:31 2017 Wednesday ,29 March

NPRA holds training course

GMT 08:18 2017 Thursday ,14 December

Twitter makes 'tweetstorms' easier

GMT 17:19 2012 Thursday ,12 January

New electric-car racing championships
Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle
Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle
 
 Themuslimchronicle Facebook,themuslimchronicle facebook  Themuslimchronicle Twitter,themuslimchronicle twitter Themuslimchronicle Rss,themuslimchronicle rss  Themuslimchronicle Youtube,themuslimchronicle youtube  Themuslimchronicle Youtube,themuslimchronicle youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2023 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2023 ©

muslimchronicle muslimchronicle muslimchronicle muslimchronicle
themuslimchronicle themuslimchronicle themuslimchronicle
themuslimchronicle
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle