Kuwait 6-mth budget surplus down 15 pct as spending jumps | Reuters

Kuwait 6-mth budget surplus down 15 pct as spending jumps | Reuters:

"* Spending soars over 50 pct in first half

* Most of rise due to current expenditure, not investment

* May partly reflect payments' timing, not annual allocations

* Impact on domestic demand not as large as figures suggest

* But figures underline growing pressure on state finances

By Sylvia Westall

KUWAIT, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Kuwait's budget surplus narrowed in the first six months of its fiscal year as spending soared over 50 percent, partly thanks to increased outlays on public sector wages, while oil revenues fell, figures from the Finance Ministry showed.

The budget surplus for April to September was 10.72 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($37.9 billion), a Reuters calculation based on official data showed. That was down 15 percent from 12.65 billion dinars during the same period a year earlier.

Although Kuwait's fiscal position is still strong because of its oil wealth, the International Monetary Fund has told the government that it will need to invest in infrastructure projects and control public wage growth to strengthen the economy and maintain a healthy balance sheet."

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