Time not yet ripe for halting stimulus: Saudi

The global financial crisis had only a minor impact of the Saudi economy, but it is still too soon for countries to scale back stimulus packages aimed at supporting recovery, Saudi Arabia's finance minister said.

The world's biggest oil exporter, like other nations, has boosted spending on infrastructure, education and healthcare this year seeking to underpin economic growth. "I believe that the world has seen the worst of the crisis, however, we are still not out of the woods," Saudi Finance Minister Ibrahim Al Assaf said in an interview.

"Countries need to look at the right timing about when to withdraw, when to implement 'the exit strategy' to start drawing back the stimulus packages. It is not now, this is not the right time and it has to be country specific," he added.