Kuwait is assumed to have achieved actual oil revenues during the first five months in the amount of about KD11.3 billion, said a report by Al-Shall Economic Consultants. The report said that by the end of August 2012, the fifth month of the current fiscal year 2012/2013 has passed and Kuwaiti oil prices are still consolidated and have revived their rise above the $100 per barrel level due to the political risks.
Average Kuwaiti oil price for most of August scored about $108.6 per barrel, with a noticeable rise by $10 over July average ($98.6 per barrel).
"As such, the average price of the Kuwaiti barrel of oil for the first five months of the current fiscal year scored about $104.7 per barrel, a $39.7 per barrel increase (61.1 percent) over the new hypothetical price for the current budget at $65 per barrel," the report said.
April's average price was the highest at $116.9 per barrel, thus Augusts' average price lower by $8.3 per barrel ($104.5 per barrel average price in August 2011). Last fiscal year 2011/2012 which ended on March 31, 2012 scored an average price of $109.9 per barrel for the Kuwaiti oil.
"Kuwait is assumed to have achieved actual oil revenues during the first five months in the amount of about KD.3 billion (We lowered our expectation calculated based on exporting 2.7 million barrels of crude oil per day, until the issuance of the monthly financial reports of the State from the Ministry of Finance)," the report added.
Assuming production levels and prices would continue at their present level, an assumption which is unrealistic on the price side, probable oil revenues would score about KD27.1 billion for the entire current fiscal year, which is KD14.3 billion above the budget estimate.
Adding KD1.2 billion in non-oil revenues, total budget revenues for the current fiscal year would score about KD28.3 billion. With an expenditures allocations figure at KD22.7 billion, the resultant will be a hypothetical surplus by about KD5.6 billion, however, it will be higher when calculating the estimated budgeted expenses for the entire fiscal year 2012/2013.
The Saudi Gazette
2 September
