KUWAIT — Kuwait's economy grew 29 percent in nominal terms last year, the fastest rate since 2005, as high crude prices helped boost output and revenue in the OPEC member state, central bank data showed Tuesday. The bank tends not to release real GDP data until a much later date. The data showed that the economy grew by a revised 12.7 percent in 2010 in nominal terms, according to a Reuters calculation based on the official data, down from 16.7 percent as previously reported. Kuwait pegs its dinar to a basket of currencies and the government depends on income from crude oil for around 95 percent of its budget. While Kuwait is fiscally sound, the Gulf country is suffering from a political crisis triggered by a long-running row between the government and parliament, which has held up economic reforms and investment. The economy is expected to grow 6.5-6.6 percent this year in real terms, central bank governor Mohammad Al-Hashel said last month. While Kuwait is in a fiscally strong position, with 13 consecutive years of budget surpluses, economists and policymakers have said the government's expenditure on salaries and benefits is not sustainable in the long run. Output of the oil and gas sector, which makes up 62 percent of the $158 billion economy, jumped 49.4 percent at current prices in 2011 compared to a 22.8 percent rise in the previous year. The central bank cut its key discount rate by 50 basis points to 2.0 percent. — Reuters
