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本帖最后由 爱城闲人 于 2014-12-9 20:36 编辑 ' ?! R0 ]$ r, h* w/ O: R8 r
3 _& O( d% i; f: f% k }( M& dPremier Says Low Oil Prices Could Leave Hole in Provincial Budget
: h# O/ R& R. w) S" L. Z! o* DTuesday, December 09, 2014 - Economy, Infrastructure, Oil0 q* K. }& C# w3 R# L" [6 A
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The price of oil hovered around $63 US/barrel Tuesday after one of its worst days in years Tuesday.6 P" M' ^* l2 F% g5 @0 ?6 k
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And Premier Jim Prentice says low prices could leave a $7 billion hole in the province’s budget./ X. @* u+ l. P$ d% E" E; A" Z6 S
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Prentice 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.”
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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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6 `/ b F3 y# ?" s; j3 Z2 H- APrentice 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.& G2 |9 q0 S3 j3 k; M7 I, {
7 J1 @' j9 @; z: z, i4 Q Z“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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5 ^: M1 q. R& x. f( u8 I( _Tuesday’s comments come days after a Morgan Stanley report said crude oil prices could drop to $43 US/barrel in 2015 before rebounding.8 d) C+ w) E/ N* d% H& p# c
5 c+ C \5 x/ ? LLast year’s provincial budget was based on a forecasted price of $95 US/barrel.: s4 w$ G% O1 k7 E/ K
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Prentice says future budgets will rely on much more conservative price estimates.
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: I$ {- }% A: Y% Z“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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2 v) _; N) d! G* w* ^$ qPrentice also says the government is not considering a provincial sales tax to cover possible shortfalls from low oil prices.
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发表于 2014-12-9 15:59
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