RIYADH, Oct 9 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia expects to spend more than initially budgeted for 2010 but it is too early to say whether the biggest Arab economy will post a deficit despite an improving economy, its finance minister said.
In December, Saudi Arabia drafted its 2010 budget with a gap of 70 billion riyals ($18.67 billion) and spending of 540 billion riyals..
'Our expectation is ... there will be a rise,' Ibrahim Alassaf told Al Arabiya television in comments aired on Saturday when asked whether expenditures would be higher than budgeted.
He cited as reason some projects such as construction plans at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Islam's holiest city.
Assaf said it was too early to say whether the kingdom, a member of the world's leading economies or G20, would post a deficit as forecast, but added the situation seems to have improved.
'There is still some time left till the end of the year, but at this time things appears better than what we had estimated at the beginning of the year,' he said, without elaborating.
Analysts polled by Reuters expect the Saudi economy growing by 3.8 percent this year, up from 0.6 percent in 2009
During the global financial crisis, Saudi Arabia announced a 5-year $400 billion stimulus, the biggest relative to gross domestic production in the G20.
($1=3.75 riyals)
(Reporting by Ulf Laessing; Editing by Toby Chopra) Keywords: SAUDI BUDGET/ (ulf.laessing@reuters.com ; +966 1 463 2603; Reuters Messaging:ulf.laessingreuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
In December, Saudi Arabia drafted its 2010 budget with a gap of 70 billion riyals ($18.67 billion) and spending of 540 billion riyals..
'Our expectation is ... there will be a rise,' Ibrahim Alassaf told Al Arabiya television in comments aired on Saturday when asked whether expenditures would be higher than budgeted.
He cited as reason some projects such as construction plans at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Islam's holiest city.
Assaf said it was too early to say whether the kingdom, a member of the world's leading economies or G20, would post a deficit as forecast, but added the situation seems to have improved.
'There is still some time left till the end of the year, but at this time things appears better than what we had estimated at the beginning of the year,' he said, without elaborating.
Analysts polled by Reuters expect the Saudi economy growing by 3.8 percent this year, up from 0.6 percent in 2009
During the global financial crisis, Saudi Arabia announced a 5-year $400 billion stimulus, the biggest relative to gross domestic production in the G20.
($1=3.75 riyals)
(Reporting by Ulf Laessing; Editing by Toby Chopra) Keywords: SAUDI BUDGET/ (ulf.laessing@reuters.com ; +966 1 463 2603; Reuters Messaging:ulf.laessingreuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.