RIYADH: Saudi Arabia will continue massive public spending despite a 50 per cent drop in the price of oil, which provides the bulk of its revenue, the finance minister said on Wednesday.

Ibrahim bin Abdulaziz al-Assaf commented after completing the 2015 budget, which will be presented to cabinet “in the near future”, the official Saudi Press Agency said.

Financial analysts expect the budget to be approved as early as Monday. The kingdom is the largest economy in the Arab world, and Opec’s biggest crude producer.

Assaf said the budget comes during “challenging” global economic conditions but surpluses and reserves built over many years have given it “depth and a line of defence that come in handy in times of need”.

Published in Dawn December 18th , 2014