Iraq's oil revenue projected at USD71.07b in 2015 budget

(MENAFN) Iraq's Finance Ministry said that it predicted the country's oil revenues to reach 84 trillion dinars in 2015, adding that the country's general budget for next year is USD104.08 billion with a USD19.46 billion deficit, KUNA reported.

The Ministry said that the 2015 budget is based on USD60 as the price of the oil barrel, as well as the exports of oil being of 3.3 million barrels per day, adding that it projects that the non-oil revenues would be USD12.69 billion.

The Ministry attributed the deficit to the continuous decline in global oil prices, which almost lost half of its value since it started declining in June, as well as the current situation of political unrest in the country which has negatively impacted its industrial and agricultural sectors.

"This has put us in a very difficult position, so we have decided to impose taxes on major goods. However they don't include social care, wages of medium-income people, fuel and food," The Iraqi Minister of Finance said in a press conference.