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本帖最后由 爱城闲人 于 2014-12-9 20:36 编辑 ( o8 i( ?$ n m" f0 P9 X/ {
& O; _% N7 a6 N: Q1 FPremier Says Low Oil Prices Could Leave Hole in Provincial Budget
6 Q0 h( m% e8 {! [, S, o" kTuesday, December 09, 2014 - Economy, Infrastructure, Oil
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1 d' S" i* s% C0 lThe 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.. U, {9 @4 \. m3 D, q
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Prentice gave his “State of the Province” speech to the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce Tuesday.6 A& s* V+ ?' h+ s* s/ c9 \7 `# }
& Y; G! j+ P/ lTwo 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.”4 ?# m9 B( _! }% K5 l- R
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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 $40 billion budget.
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Prentice says the government will have to reduce spending if low prices are sustained. He says across-the-board cuts in spending won’t happen, instead Prentice says his government will focus on core services and limit spending below the rate of growth, plus inflation.
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# \2 s+ @9 K/ E2 B' H1 |4 X“It is incumbent on us to adjust our expectations and adjust our spending to begin to mitigate these risks for the long-term. And the solution cannot be to simply wait for the next upswing in prices,” he says.
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$ J4 | e1 @+ d1 |: cTuesday’s comments come days after a Morgan Stanley report said crude oil prices could drop to $43 US/barrel in 2015 before rebounding.5 ~- H. r @6 u! Z6 H
* O5 `/ O7 L" yLast year’s provincial budget was based on a forecasted price of $95 US/barrel.8 B) L, O1 k8 u. N2 j( z" C& g( G
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Prentice says future budgets will rely on much more conservative price estimates. O4 o! ~/ G! O8 g
d% q5 B6 J; ]: [4 r“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. D* m2 e8 R4 wPrentice also says the government is not considering a provincial sales tax to cover possible shortfalls from low oil prices.4 {% Q( ^) X: c. P9 Z
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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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