KUWAIT CITY: Kuwait's income hit $35.3 billion in the first half of the fiscal year, surpassing the budget's full year target and posting $19.3 billion in provisional surplus, official figures showed Wednesday. Earnings in the six months to Sept. 30 were 2.4 percent higher than the $34.5 billion of revenues estimated for the whole 2010/2011 fiscal year, according to figures posted on the central bank of Kuwait's website. The figures were up 23 percent on $28.7 billion of revenues earned in the first six months of the previous fiscal year thanks to higher oil prices and production. Oil income in the period reached $33.2 billion, or 94.2 percent of total revenues, and were 8.8 percent higher than the $30.5 billion the budget projected for the whole year. Oil revenues were up 22.5 percent on the $27.1 billion earned in the same period last fiscal year. Actual spending reached $16 billion, way below the budget projections of $57.8 billion for the whole year, the figures showed. At mid-year, Kuwait posted a provisional budget surplus of $19.3 billion compared to a deficit of $23.3 billion projected by the budget. Local economic reports have forecast that Kuwait would post a healthy budget surplus for the 12th straight year, thanks to a sharp rise in oil revenues. The National Bank of Kuwait, the emirate's largest lender, said in an economic report two weeks ago that the budget surplus would range between $8.2 billion and $13.8 billion, depending on oil revenues. The Kuwaiti budget estimates revenues at $34.5 billion and spending at $57.8 billion, but NBK's forecast put revenues at $64 billion and spending at around $50 billion. Kuwait has calculated oil revenues at a conservative price of $43 a barrel while NBK estimates average Kuwaiti oil prices at $72-73 a barrel in the fiscal year which ends March 31. Under Kuwaiti law, 10 percent of revenues are deducted every year in favor of the emirate's sovereign wealth fund, whose assets are estimated at around $277 billion. Returns on the fund are not included in the budget. OPEC's fifth-largest producer has projected a deficit in each of the past 11 fiscal years, but has ended all of them in the black, accumulating more than $140 billion of surpluses. Kuwait claims it holds 10 percent of global crude reserves and is pumping around 2.3 million barrels per day. Meanwhile, world oil prices fell on Wednesday on the back of the strengthening dollar and forecasts of surging American crude reserves in the upcoming weekly US inventories report. New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in December, slid 91 cents to $81.64 a barrel. Brent North Sea crude for December delivery retreated 88 cents to $82.78 per barrel in late morning London trade. Later on Wednesday, the US government's Department of Energy will publish its report on oil reserves for the week ending Oct. 22. Ahead of the DoE, industry group the American Petroleum Institute (API) said Tuesday in a separate report that US crude inventories jumped last week by 6.4 million barrels. That was the sharpest API rise in seven months and beat market expectations for an increase of 1.1 million barrels.
