Saudi Arabia To Take On Billions In Debt To Survive Oil Price Crisis

By

Saudi Arabia may have to borrow as much as $58 billion this year to cover a budget shortfall caused by the oil price slump, Bloomberg reports, citing Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan.

Al-Jadaan told media this week that the Kingdom might issue bonds worth $26.57 billion (100 billion riyals) this year in addition to an earlier issue of $31.88 billion (120 billion riyals) worth of debt.

Saudi Aramco, for its part, is considering a $10 billion sale in part of its pipeline business, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.

“The kingdom went through similar crises in its history – maybe even worse – and was able to pass through them,” Al-Jadaan said. “This is not an exception.”

Most observers note that this price crisis is like no other in history. The unique combination of excess supply and a 30 percent drop in demand weighs heavily on oil-dependent economies throughout the world, and even low-cost Saudi Arabia is not exempt. 

The oil market is indeed flooded. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week, citing Saudi oil officials, that at least one in every ten VLCCs, each capable of carrying 2 million barrels of oil, is used for floating storage with many holding Saudi crude. Some of that, the sources said, had yet to find buyers.

Saudi Arabia is bracing for the inevitable blow. In March, the government asked state agencies to cut their budgets by at least 20 percent, Reuters reported, citing sources in the know who declined to be named. That was before OPEC+ agreed to implement cuts of 9.7 million bpd in hopes this would help prices. It didn’t.

Now, according to an analyst with an Egypt-based investment bank, the Saudi deficit could widen to 15 percent of GDP, Bloomberg notes. That would be less than the 17 percent recorded for 2016, but it would still be quite brutal for the Kingdom that had to roll back austerity measures it implemented during the 2014-2016 crisis pretty quickly as bureaucrats rebelled.

This article was originally published on Oilprice.com

OilPrice.com

OilPrice.com is the fastest growing energy news site online. Analysis focuses on Oil and Gas, Alternative Energy and Geopolitics.

2 thoughts on “Saudi Arabia To Take On Billions In Debt To Survive Oil Price Crisis

  • April 26, 2020 at 1:25 pm
    Permalink

    The Saudis need the debt to finance the War on Yemen. They have to pay billions for this war against humanity, a war that is one of the worst war crime in history. The Saudis borrowed in 1991 to finance the US bombing on Iraq and the first Gulf War. The Kingdom has another need for the funds to finance its terrorist activities in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Libya. This also includes funds for killing Saudi people who have rejected the Saudi System.
    The other needs for the Loan is to finance Trump and US imperialist activities against Iraq, Syria, and Iran. Without the Saudi funding US imperialism may not be able to continue its wars in Middle East. This also includes spending to finance US Military Industrial Complex. MBS needs the loans to buy soccer teams in England or another country.
    He also needs the funds to finance the expected US to reoccupy Iraq fully by bombing the Iraqi Resistance and military forces. If this expected war brings Iran, then US imperialism can fight Iran inside Iraq. MBS needs huge funds for these activities that will affect the people of the region.
    Finally, the borrowed Funds will not be used for raising the standard of living of the people.

    Reply
    • April 26, 2020 at 3:22 pm
      Permalink

      Right to the point.Could not agree more!

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *