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本帖最后由 爱城闲人 于 2014-12-9 20:36 编辑 3 z& L" J9 a. o# Z% S' E# s5 B0 V
7 |( c9 j" _- pPremier Says Low Oil Prices Could Leave Hole in Provincial Budget7 v& q+ ~6 R0 t5 K# q: a8 O
Tuesday, December 09, 2014 - Economy, Infrastructure, Oil: E$ [2 b* E; o1 t1 }; l7 c( p* l
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The price of oil hovered around $63 US/barrel Tuesday after one of its worst days in years Tuesday., ]4 W9 a2 Y8 [4 {/ S# N/ _
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And Premier Jim Prentice says low prices could leave a $7 billion hole in the province’s budget.
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Prentice 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 $75 US/barrel. At that time he said low prices would have “consequences for all Albertans.”) @1 R- X7 i$ Q# }" O, s# l1 x
6 c& K* b* `6 _- Z/ J/ R7 M4 P& CNow, 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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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.1 A9 U+ c, T/ i9 S* n/ m
) b9 [' Y O2 @Tuesday’s comments come days after a Morgan Stanley report said crude oil prices could drop to $43 US/barrel in 2015 before rebounding.4 n1 [0 Z) e; d6 ~6 J
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Last year’s provincial budget was based on a forecasted price of $95 US/barrel.$ Z% h( R" J- f6 I
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Prentice says future budgets will rely on much more conservative price estimates./ z; ^$ |6 n$ j. a/ l8 U" g
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“In the long-term, a budget that is tied to to volatile energy prices year-in, year-out represents a significant risk.”5 U! L; o. o/ m4 j1 R; q% X3 \
2 b1 O9 m; A5 O5 f4 iPrentice also says the government is not considering a provincial sales tax to cover possible shortfalls from low oil prices.0 h/ }( A8 d8 \
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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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