RIYADH, Dec 29: In the backdrop of Arab spring and strong crude prices, Saudi Arabia unveiled its largest-ever budget, boosting 2013 expenditure outlay to 820 billion riyals ($219 billion).

The budget for the fiscal year 2013, approved by the Saudi Council of Ministers on Saturday estimated the revenues for next fiscal year at SR829 billion, projecting a surplus of SR9 billion as compared to SR386 billion ($102.9 billion) accrued in 2012.

According to reports, Saudi Arabia posted revenue of 1.24 trillion riyals in 2012 and expenditure of 853 billion riyals.

Expenditure in last fiscal year overshoot the targeted SR690 billion by SR163 billion, as the Kingdom went on a spending spree.

King Abdullah pledged more than $500 billion on social welfare and to build projects to ensure that the country remains unscathed by the kind of political unrest that swept through other Arab countries last year.

Budget figures underline that the next year too, Saudi Arabia plans to spend heavily on welfare and infrastructure projects.

Saudi Arabia uses conservative estimates of oil prices when planning its revenues.

The government this year needed a break-even oil price for the budget of around $75 a barrel, Fahad al-Turki, senior economist at the local Jadwa Investment Co, was quoted as saying.

The kingdom’s break-even price to balance next year’s budget is estimated at $65 a barrel, up from $62.20 this year, National Commercial Bank, the kingdom’s largest lender by assets, said last month in one of its reports.—RH