Kuwait has issued its budget for 2013/2014, which sets out spending of KD21bn ($73.7bn) over this period.

The budget was issued by the emir in decree, as the parliament is dissolved, on 17 July. The budget forecasts a deficit of KD2.9bn, significantly lower than the KD7.2bn deficit predicted in the 2012/2013 budget.

The 2013/2014 budget has been set based on an oil price of $70 a barrel, an increase on the $65 a barrel set in the 2012/2013 budget, but is still regarded as conservative.

Kuwait’s fiscal year runs between April 1 and March 31. Figures for the fiscal year up until March 2013 have not yet been released, but provisional data suggest a surplus of around $38bn. The surplus is mainly due to a combination of the conservative oil price and a lag in public spending.