Decypha – Cairo: Kuwait’s surplus declined to KWD 4.7 billion (US 15.5 billion) in 2016, an 11-year low, as earnings from oil exports remained weak, according to Albawaba News.
Lower oil prices have negatively impacted oil export revenues with a reported decline of 14.1% in 2016 at KWD 12.5 billion, its lowest level in over a decade, Kuwait Times reported. The Kuwait Export Crude (KEC) price plummeted by 18%, after recording an annual average of $39 per barrel.
The expected sustained recovery in oil prices for 2017 will boost oil export revenues in the near-to medium term. To date, KEC’s average price per barrel was $52 up to mid-March.
Kuwait’s non-oil export revenue, which consists predominantly of ethylene, took a plunge as well in 2016 primarily due to lower ethylene prices. Prices for ethylene are expected to recover; already prices have jumped by 23% for the first quarter of 2017.
Imports were flat in 2016 as gains in capital good imports balanced weakness in consumer good imports. Consumer good imports declined by 9% while imports of capital good rose by a strong 10.9% in 2016. Softer consumer demand affected consumer imports especially those of motor cars component. Passenger motor cars imports declined by 20% in 2016 compared to the 2.5% decline in 2015.
By Decypha Editorial Team
