Kuwait's revenue doubles to $56bn
Kuwait City, February 28, 2008
Kuwait's actual state revenue in the first 10 months of the 2007/08 fiscal year stood at almost double the budget forecast.
Two months before the end of the year to March, revenue amounted to 15.35 billion dinars ($56.31 billion), compared to a budget estimate of 8.3 billion dinars, according to a finance ministry's monthly bulletin received on Thursday.
Actual expenditure was 5.8 billion dinars, about half of initial projection of 11.3 billion dinars. The new figures indicate a surplus of 9.55 billion dinars while the budget assumed a deficit of 3.18 billion dinars.
Soaring oil prices were behind the jump as Kuwait, the world's seventh-largest oil exporter, has assumed a conservative oil price average of $36 a barrel in predicting the year's revenue.
Oil revenue amounted to 14.4 billion dinars compared to a full year estimate of 7.45 billion dinars.
The US crude benchmark hit a record of $102.08 on Wednesday and Kuwait's crude fetched $91.83 a barrel.
Oil exports are the state's main revenue earner, accounting for almost 95 percent of state income. - Reuters