Economics
Saudi Arabia Posts $15 Billion Surplus on Soaring Oil Income
- Oil revenue rises 58% compared to same period last year
- Officials stick to fiscal discipline with spending restrained
A worker at an oil processing facility of Saudi Aramco, a Saudi Arabian state-owned oil and gas company, at the Abqaiq oil field.
Photographer: Stanislav Krasilnikov/TASS/Getty Images
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Saudi Arabia reported a 57.5 billion riyal ($15.3 billion) budget surplus in the first quarter as officials kept spending restrained despite surging oil income.
Total government revenue was 278 billion riyals, 36% more than the same quarter last year, while spending rose 4% over the same period to 220.5 billion riyals. Capital expenditures fell 1% as the kingdom relies more on its sovereign wealth fund for projects and domestic investment.