Oil Price Collapse Costs Middle Eastern Countries ‘$390 Billion’ in Losses
The International Monetary Fund has reported that last year’s dramatic drop in oil prices cost oil-exporting countries in the Middle East $390 billion in losses.
The fund has estimated losses for oil-exporting countries in the coming year at $150 billion.
Slowing economic growth will be one of the consequences of this economic loss.
Read more: International Monetary Fund’s forecast on rising unemployment in Iran
The International Monetary Fund says that Middle Eastern oil-exporting countries will be forced to implement austerity measures in the coming years to compensate for this economic loss.
Within a year, oil prices fell from around $115 per barrel in mid-2014 to less than $30, and have now risen again to over $40 per barrel.
This price decline has had clear negative effects on the economies of major oil-exporting countries such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, causing their budget deficits.
In its previous report, the International Monetary Fund had predicted that the amount of money oil-exporting countries would lose from the decline in oil prices would be $360 billion, but the fund’s latest forecast is $30 billion higher than the previous figure.
OPEC has forecast that oil prices will reach $70 per barrel over the next four years. Read more.
The Saudi government has also approved a reform plan aimed at reducing dependence on oil revenues.
Source: BBC Persian
