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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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' ]7 r4 F) o8 U0 U gPremier Says Low Oil Prices Could Leave Hole in Provincial Budget) G' ^6 `1 W3 C( }, r
Tuesday, December 09, 2014 - Economy, Infrastructure, Oil
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The price of oil hovered around $63 US/barrel Tuesday after one of its worst days in years Tuesday.' `/ p1 A/ q) [$ y
% ~) i7 k% J' {' q; d$ ~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.2 e- Z9 D6 ^% x: v. N7 \
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Two weeks ago, the Premier said the government expected oil prices to end the year between $65 US/barrel and $75 US/barrel. At that time he said low prices would have “consequences for all Albertans.”
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n- c: L$ E! _' L% g0 |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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, ?, j! K8 Y. ~5 _* T9 t“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.% w# ^8 M" L/ l8 \9 H! 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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Last year’s provincial budget was based on a forecasted price of $95 US/barrel.6 n) I- V8 y( w
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Prentice says future budgets will rely on much more conservative price estimates.
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# V0 C, A) M7 H7 q/ o4 g+ W* p“In the long-term, a budget that is tied to to volatile energy prices year-in, year-out represents a significant risk.”
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Prentice also says the government is not considering a provincial sales tax to cover possible shortfalls from low oil prices.' V; W3 ~7 w% c' c9 K5 h& Y2 y$ u
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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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