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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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$ o8 Y8 B, g4 l5 Z8 D& [Premier Says Low Oil Prices Could Leave Hole in Provincial Budget& m* o! @6 r( ~7 J ]( l
Tuesday, December 09, 2014 - Economy, Infrastructure, Oil1 d' `1 R/ V' T5 l$ u2 k
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The price of oil hovered around $63 US/barrel Tuesday after one of its worst days in years Tuesday.5 C# i- G% O" `# Q6 f
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And Premier Jim Prentice says low prices could leave a $7 billion hole in the province’s budget.% J- k4 ^1 N$ m: g) y
# ~) N" E" v/ O" n$ a! b# y: aPrentice gave his “State of the Province” speech to the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce Tuesday.; I K, {% | H# p' F& A8 u
+ m3 B( E% ^! s: D* ]* ?. DTwo 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.”* D/ d [% H6 v1 r, j3 ^
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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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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.2 ~! S- y( [' v# }
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Tuesday’s comments come days after a Morgan Stanley report said crude oil prices could drop to $43 US/barrel in 2015 before rebounding.* C' g3 g$ X7 _
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Last year’s provincial budget was based on a forecasted price of $95 US/barrel.
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7 S) P& d3 k4 O7 RPrentice says future budgets will rely on much more conservative price estimates.
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“In the long-term, a budget that is tied to to volatile energy prices year-in, year-out represents a significant risk.”
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# O+ g$ I. b1 yPrentice also says the government is not considering a provincial sales tax to cover possible shortfalls from low oil prices.& Y, V: u% w- M$ C
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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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