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本帖最后由 爱城闲人 于 2014-12-9 20:36 编辑 ) Z$ Z6 v0 r5 ], ?2 ~. T `
8 z' d" f" Z0 r( ZPremier Says Low Oil Prices Could Leave Hole in Provincial Budget/ N( `. _: w% c/ e1 x
Tuesday, December 09, 2014 - Economy, Infrastructure, Oil8 P3 F) u5 n7 ?* |
" T! X2 c0 ^5 M" AThe price of oil hovered around $63 US/barrel Tuesday after one of its worst days in years Tuesday.
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And Premier Jim Prentice says low prices could leave a $7 billion hole in the province’s budget.5 x& M& T9 U! a- i( H
~. a; y( G& E& e7 t( OPrentice 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 $75 US/barrel. At that time he said low prices would have “consequences for all Albertans.”) T. p8 I( ?5 v( j; x2 u3 s* y, j
# ?& }4 l" D* |$ ?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 X; g; b2 T0 M* V! ~" k
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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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( B/ E/ G7 J4 p“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 l3 B" F9 l3 Z* z& Z
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Tuesday’s comments come days after a Morgan Stanley report said crude oil prices could drop to $43 US/barrel in 2015 before rebounding.
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8 G1 A. ~$ t S+ `Last year’s provincial budget was based on a forecasted price of $95 US/barrel.
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Prentice says future budgets will rely on much more conservative price estimates.
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$ }' I, _1 U1 c4 e E" A“In the long-term, a budget that is tied to to volatile energy prices year-in, year-out represents a significant risk.”, u2 G! ~( e6 }4 F0 b5 A/ D
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Prentice also says the government is not considering a provincial sales tax to cover possible shortfalls from low oil prices.( n: B8 D' n1 ?7 N5 k7 U6 d
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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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