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本帖最后由 爱城闲人 于 2014-12-9 20:36 编辑
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3 s' M" F4 m& E5 y% o* wPremier Says Low Oil Prices Could Leave Hole in Provincial Budget
) F) g6 O D ETuesday, December 09, 2014 - Economy, Infrastructure, Oil: F" l$ S* ~" P2 j. m
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The price of oil hovered around $63 US/barrel Tuesday after one of its worst days in years Tuesday.0 }3 ]6 V" ]/ c' _
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And Premier Jim Prentice says low prices could leave a $7 billion hole in the province’s budget.
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Prentice gave his “State of the Province” speech to the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce Tuesday./ v) @6 O. Z6 r/ c& I$ x
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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.”
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t' T _- }. d* N. B. ~- Q RNow, with prices lower than $65 US/barrel, Prentice says low prices could leave a $6-$7 billion hole in Alberta’s $40 billion budget.- j v, }( w% ~# ]& Q
8 f% f9 V4 G2 l! ]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.6 A: L8 Y1 q* x# \ P
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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.3 b: M5 E" w7 N: V6 [( P7 S
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Tuesday’s comments come days after a Morgan Stanley report said crude oil prices could drop to $43 US/barrel in 2015 before rebounding.' z8 A5 O2 `% u* W6 u6 G% r
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Last year’s provincial budget was based on a forecasted price of $95 US/barrel.% |9 f- ~# o" N" L& [3 @
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Prentice says future budgets will rely on much more conservative price estimates.' c' y" N$ t5 N/ S ? W
2 E9 U: |5 W$ c8 Q“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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Prentice also says the government is not considering a provincial sales tax to cover possible shortfalls from low oil prices.( u) ]# H: P4 F
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楼主: 辽宁好汉
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发表于 2014-12-9 15:59
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