Alberta will use some of its surplus to boost investment in
healthcare, policing, skills training and education. The
province also announced a new fiscal framework that would
require all future Alberta governments to use any surpluses to
pay down debt before investing in one-time initiatives.
"In Budget 2023, we continue our commitment to paying down
debt all while continuing to position our economy for growth and
invest in the top priorities of Albertans," Finance Minister
Travis Toews said in a statement.
Total expenditure in 2023/24 were forecast to hit C$68.3
billion, which is C$2.6 billion more than forecast for 2022/23.
Alberta's revenue is set to hit a record C$76 billion this
fiscal year ending March 31 and expected to fall to C$71 billion
in 2023/24, as energy prices ease from the 14-year highs they
hit last year.
Resources revenues, which mainly comprise money from oil
production, are forecast to fall to C$18.4 billion in 2023/24
from C$27.5 billion in the current fiscal year.
Real GDP growth is also expected to slow to 2.8% in 2023
from 4.8% in 2022 as higher interest rates and prices weigh on
consumer spending and residential investment.
The Alberta government based its 2023/24 budget assumptions
on an average U.S. crude oil price of $79 a barrel. U.S. oil
futures are currently trading around $77 a barrel.
($1 = 1.3618 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by Nia Williams, editing by Deepa Babington)
By Nia Williams
Feb 28 (Reuters) - Canada's main oil-producing province
Alberta on Tuesday forecast a C$2.4 billion ($1.8 billion)
budget surplus in the 2023/24 fiscal year as resource revenues
remained strong but shrank from the record levels hit this year.
Alberta's surplus in the 2022/23 fiscal year is expected to
be C$10.4 billion after soaring global energy prices and
increased oil output swelled provincial coffers.
The province is also forecasting surpluses of C$2 billion
and C$1.4 billion over 2024/25 and 2025/26, respectively.
The rosy financial outlook is likely to provide a boost to
Premier Danielle Smith, who faces a provincial election later
this year and needs to broaden her appeal beyond her right-wing
support base.
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