Azernews.Az

By Abdul Kerimkhanov

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has submitted to the parliament the draft budget bill for the next Iranian calendar year 1399, which starts on March 20, 2020.

The proposed budget amounts to about 1.99 quadrillion rials (about $473.5 billion), which is 14 percent higher than the current year’s approved budget.

The bill has estimated the government’s budget at 5.63 quadrillion rials (about $134.04 billion), 8.2 percent higher than the figure in 2019’s budget.

At the same time, a 15-percent rise has been envisaged in the salary of the governmental employees.

The submitted bill has envisaged 2.61 quadrillion rials (about $62.14 billion) of incomes and 3.67 quadrillion rials (about $87.38 billion) of expenses.

Revenues from exporting oil, gas and gas condensate are estimated at 454.9 trillion rials (about $10.83 billion). Recall that 1.37 quadrillion rials (about $32.61 billion) approved in the current year’s budget.

Tax incomes are predicted to be 1.95 quadrillion rials (about $46.42 billion), rising 27 percent from 1.72 quadrillion rials (about $40.95 billion) envisaged in the present year’s budget.

The proposed budget for 2020 requires the government to pay 20 percent of its oil revenues to National Development Fund (NDF), the same as current year’s budget,

The next year’s budget bill has been modified in terms of resources, expenditures, policies, and objectives, considering the resistance against the U.S. sanctions.

The Iranian government has tried to have the least dependence on oil resources in the history of the country’s economy.

U.S. President Donald Trump began imposing punitive measures in May 2018, after unilaterally withdrawing from an accord that gave Iran relief from sanctions in return for limits on its nuclear program.

The International Monetary Fund has forecast that Iran’s economy will contract by 9.5 percent in 2019.

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Abdul Kerimkhanov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AbdulKerim94

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