IMF's Lagarde says no excuse for energy subsidies in the Arab world - The National

IMF's Lagarde says no excuse for energy subsidies in the Arab world - The National:

"The head of the International Monetary Fund said that there is no excuse for Arab countries to continue subsidizing energy and that such subsidies come at the expense of much needed investment in health, education and other public services. "There is really no excuse for the continued use of energy subsidies," Ms Lagarde, the IMF's managing director, said at a meeting of Arab finance ministers in Dubai on Saturday. "They are extremely costly – averaging 4.5 per cent of GDP among oil exporters and 3 per cent of GDP among oil importers, despite lower oil prices. They lack transparency – subsidies are often implicit and off budget. They are vastly inequitable – favoring the wealthy who consume a lot of energy." "



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