Turkish Ambassador highlights necessity of developing economical relations             Gasoline price drops in Lebanon             Harley-Davidson to open first Beirut showroom             Construction permits up 34% in first half of 2010             Profits of top 12 banks up 23% to $752m in first half of 2010             Sadiki: Kuwaiti Fund's South projects to be implemented by the end of 2010             Cooperation Agreement between Agriculture Ministry and Banks' Association             Car sales up 5.2% year-on-year in first 7 months of 2010             Association of Banks finalizes protocols for judicial and agricultural loans             Lebanon to auction offshore gas exploration by 2012
iloubnan.info > Business > All news > Draft 2009 budget approved, projected deficit at 9.4% of GDP
Draft 2009 budget approved, projected deficit at 9.4% of GDP
iloubnan.info - June 21, 2009

BEIRUT – The Council of Ministers approved the draft budget proposal for 2009 after political obstacles delayed extensively its approval. The draft budget forecast a deficit of 28.4% of total expenditures, equivalent to 9.4% of GDP, compared to an expected a deficit of 27% in the 2008 budget proposal and a realized deficit of 29.3% of total expenditures last year, Byblos Bank weekly statement reported on Sunday.

The increase in expenditures is attributed to the rise in debt servicing, as well as to the $915m needed to finance the public-sector salary increase, and to the $22m earmarked for the parliamentary elections. In parallel, the budget projects the gross public debt to increase by $3bn to $50bn at end-2009 if the privatization of the mobile phone licenses does not take place this year. The 2009 draft budget proposal is based on a real GDP growth of 3% in 2009, on an expected inflation rate of 5% and on an average crude oil price of $54 per barrel.


( Advertisment )
 
"General Suleiman": the music video
Add Your Comment

You have to sign in in order to comment and if you did not register yet, please click here to register
News in all sections
( Advertisment )
files
Highlights on the key moments of the first conference on the internet in the Arabic world: everything about the future of ad, marketing, social networks online